Snorkeling

News about snorkeling

Friday, April 04, 2008

Second Quarterly Underwater Cleanup is Slated for Saturday, April 12, 2008

Dive Friends Bonaire and NetTech sponsor four underwater cleanups each year, one each quarter.  The second cleanup for this year will be in front of Dive Friends Hamlet location, at the north end of Hamlet Oasis.  It will take place on Saturday, April 12, 2008 at 1:00 PM. 

Everyone is invited, divers and non-divers alike, as shore personnel are also needed for help in counting and tracking trash which has been brought up.  Anyone interested in participating should meet at the Dive Friends Hamlet location on the ocean promenade at 1:00 PM on Saturday, April 12.  After a comprehensive briefing, divers and shore support will clean the shallow water and shoreline directly in front of that facility.

Those participating are invited back at 5:30 PM to Dive Friends Yellow Sub for a Potlock BBQ.  Entrees and drinks are provided by Dive Friends and NetTech, but please bring a small side dish to share with friends.

For more information about the cleanups, click here.  (Source:  Dive Friends Bonaire and NetTech)

Wednesday, April 02, 2008

Dive Friends Bonaire Holds Grand Opening Party at Dive Friends Dive Inn

Last evening, April 1st, Dive Friends Bonaire officially opened their fourth, and newest, location on Bonaire, at Dive Inn.  Celebrating with customers and friends from the island, managers Gerrie Fokke and Pascal de Meyer cut the ribbon and Dive Friends Dive Inn was born.

Dive Friends Bonaire now has locations at the Yellow Submarine facility on the north end of the oceanfront promenade, Hamlet Oasis at the north of the “hotel row”, Port Bonaire, across from the airport, and at Dive Inn, at the southern area of the oceanfront promenade.  Their customers can pick up or drop off tanks at any of their locations, making it very convenient for shore divers no matter where they plan to dive for the day.

Dive Friends Dive Inn continues today with a second-hand gear sale, and then tomorrow it will open for all dive business.

Images from the grand opening party are available on the Bonaire Insider Photo Gallery by clicking here.  (Source:  Bonaire Insider reporter)

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Dive Friends Welcomes Dive Inn as their Fourth Location on Bonaire and Offers Opening Special

Dive Friends Bonaire just announced that last Wednesday, March 12, 2008, Dive Inn Bonaire officially became the fourth location of Dive Friends Bonaire.  The company welcomes this newest facility to its family of dive facilities, and feels Dive Inn will complement the existing three dive stores at Dive Friends Yellow Sub, Dive Friends Port Bonaire, Dive Friends Hamlet Oasis, as well as the two retail stores in Kralendijk.

Dive Friends Dive Inn will re-open on April 1st, 2008, after completing a metamorphosis to join the Dive Friends group.  During the first two days, April 1st and 2nd, the store will hold a huge second-hand-gear sale, with deals on BCDs, regulators, masks, and wetsuits, as well as other diving-related items.  After these sale days, the store will reopen for regular diving business, including diving packages and courses.

Dive Friends Dive Inn special location on the southern end of the oceanfront promenade adds to the already excellent coverage, as the four dive shops in the Dive Friends group make it easy for their divers to pickup or drop off tanks at any location during their visit. Dive Friends Port Bonaire can service those on the southern end of the island, Dive Friends Hamlet Oasis can assist those on the north end of the island, and the two ocean promenade locations (Dive Friends Yellow Sub, to the north, and Dive Friends Dive Inn, to the south) can serve those staying in or around Kralendijk.

Dive Friends has agreed to honor all existing reservations.  Those with existing reservations are asked to reconfirm their plans with Dive Friends by sending an e-mail to diveinn@dive-friends-bonaire.com, so that all existing reservations can be transferred correctly.

During May and June, 2008, Dive Friends Bonaire is offering a Dive Friends Dive Inn Opening Special.  Any diver booking a six-day unlimited air dive package will receive it at the special price of $99.00 per person (sales tax not included), instead of the normal price of $114.00 per person.  Additionally, each diver is then eligible for a free upgrade to Nitrox (32%), as well as a free guided dive to the Wreck of the Hilma Hooker.  Advanced reservations are necessary to receive this special price, and the special is open to divers at any of Dive Friends Bonaire’s four locations. (Source:  Dive Friends Bonaire)

Monday, March 17, 2008

Upcoming Presentation on Bonaire’s Coral Reefs

Dr. Robert Steneck, a professor of marine sciences at the University of Maine, and his team are completing a research project and will present their findings in a presentation entitled, “A Report on the Status of Coral Reefs of Bonaire in 2007.”

This presentation will summarize five years of research on Bonaire in such different areas as abundance of corals, abundance of algae, trends of distribution, abundance of carnivorous and herbivorous reef fish, coral recruitment, and impact of traditional fishing methods, among other items.

The presentation will take place in Captain Don’s Habitat conference room at 7:00 PM on Thursday, March, 20th, 2008, and all are invited to attend.  (Source:  Bonaire National Marine Park)

Note Update April 1, 2008:  A copy of Dr. Steneck’s final report on his monitoring work on Bonaire can by found online by clicking here (in PDF format). (Source:  Bonaire National Marine Park)

Thursday, October 18, 2007

Outdoor Bonaire and Bowalie Sailing Trips Introduce New Excursions

Outdoor Bonaire and Bowalie Sailing Trips have teamed up to offer two new activity excursions.

Their north tour includes exploring Washington-Slagbaai National Park by 4-wheel drive truck, followed by a sail park back to Kralendijk’s marina.

The south tour provides for a unique combination of snorkeling and sailing with views of the salt mines and slave huts, followed by a guided mangrove kayak tour. Also included is a complete lunch on the beach. (Source:  Bowalie Sailing Trips)

Wednesday, October 03, 2007

Final Quarterly Underwater Cleanup Held in Conjunction with World Cleanup Day

On Saturday, September 15, 2007, a group of over 30 divers, snorkelers, and shore support gathered together to assist with an underwater/shoreline cleanup of a portion of Bonaire’s waterfront promenade.  This cleanup was held in conjunction with World Cleanup Day, and also was the kick-off event for the island’s Love Our Planet week.

After a comprehensive briefing by Jake Richter of NetTech, the divers entered the water in front of the Dive Friends Yellow Submarine facility to bring up any new trash.  If the trash had already become colonized by corals, hydroids, or other organisms, the cleaners were expected to leave the trash in place.  Only new trash without any sort of marine encrustation or animal inhabitation was to be fully checked, and only then brought to the surface.

At the shoreline, the trash was sorted, checked once again to be sure no marine creatures had been inadvertently included, and then counted, before it was disposed of responsibly.  Although it has been only two months since a cleanup at this location, the volunteers did bring up quite a bit of trash made up of all sorts of paper and plastic food and beverage containers and utensils, glass bottles, caps and lids, clothing, shoes, light bulbs, fishing line, rope, strapping bands, and even a fuel filter!  Car parts, two tires, and building materials were also retrieved.

After the dive, all participants and their families were welcomed back for a Pot Luck BBQ—Dive Friends Bonaire and NetTech, the sponsors of the quarterly Bonaire cleanups, provided drinks and main courses, while participants supplied side dishes. 

Images from this cleanup are available online at the Bonaire Insider Photo Gallery by clicking here.  The 2008 schedule of cleanups is available now and can be viewed by clicking here.  (Source:  Dive Friends Bonaire and NetTech, N.V.)

Saturday, September 15, 2007

CORAL’s Rick Macpherson to Give Two Workshops on Monday, September 17th, 2007

The workshops, entitled, “The Role of Tourism Providers in Marine Protected Area Support”, will take place twice on Monday, September 17th at both 11:00 AM and 4:00 PM in the conference room at Captain Don’s Habitat.  This workshop will highlight lessons from other coral destinations, focus on Bonaire’s relationships between its Marine Protected Area (MPA) and tourism, and find strategic avenues for possible collaboration.

Rick MacPherson, Program Director for CORAL, has successfully worked with coral destinations worldwide to explore collaborative partnerships between Marine Protected Area staff and tourism providers.  Collaboration builds support of management goals and a stronger buy-in for conservation.  Tourism can also provide support for enforcement and monitoring.  (Source:  TCB-NY)

Thursday, September 13, 2007

Quarterly Underwater Clean Up Dive Slated for Saturday, September 15th

The regular quarterly clean up dive sponsored by Dive Friends Bonaire and NetTech will take place in conjunction with World Clean Up Day and Bonaire’s Love Our Planet Week.

This Saturday, anyone interested in joining in can meet at 1:00 PM at Dive Friends’ Yellow Submarine location on the oceanfront promenade in Kralendijk.  After a comprehensive briefing, divers and shore support will begin with a cleanup of the coastal area near the facility.

At 5:30 PM, all participants are invited back to enjoy a Potluck BBQ, with drinks and main course provided by Dive Friends and NetTech.  Please bring a small side dish or salad for all to enjoy.

For additional information on the quarterly cleanups, click here.  To view images of the July cleanup, click here.  (Source:  Dive Friends Bonaire and NetTech)

Friday, August 10, 2007

Review on Mangrove Info Center’s New Guided Lac Bay Reef Snorkel

The Mangrove Info Center, known for its kayak and solar boat tours of the mangroves at Lac Bay, has just recently announced a new item to their menu of services--reef snorkeling at Lac Bay.  I had the opportunity to join in on one of the first excursions, and thought it was a great, new experience for divers and snorkelers to try on their next Bonaire vacation.

Meeting first at the Mangrove Info Center, we all joined together while our guide, owner/manager Elly Albers, trailered the brand new boat a short distance to the Cai area of Lac Bay.  After an easy launching from the sandy beach there, we were aboard and heading out the short distance to the reef at the mouth of Lac.

After the boat was secured, we hopped in the shallow water and headed out a short distance to the reef.  The water was gin-clear and dappled with the sunlight.  As we approached the reef area, coral heads grew close to the surface and healthy populations of fish swirled around us.  A turtle made its way past us, as we headed to the area just short of the drop off.

This area provides virgin corals, so care must be taken not to touch or stand on the corals, as some uninformed snorkelers were doing when we arrived.  There can be a fair amount of surge in this area, so this excursion is recommended only for strong snorkelers and those who are very comfortable in the water.  With a maximum of ten snorkelers, everyone can be assured that they can learn as much as possible.

We spent just over an hour exploring the area and encountered black durgon, barracuda, snapper, parrotfish, and even a healthy colony of sea urchins.  Fire coral is prominent in this area, so take care not to touch.  Our guide, Elly, mentioned that she frequently encounters a variety of rays or conch, and turtles are a common site.  Images from our experience can be seen on the Bonaire Insider Photo Gallery by clicking here.

The cost for this new excursion is $42.50 per person, plus sales tax.  Reservations are highly recommended, and can be made by emailing info@mangrovecenter.com.  Information about their other excursions is available on their web site by clicking here.  (Source:  Bonaire Insider Reporter)

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Caribbean Travel and Life Magazine Premiers Interactive Web Site for Bonaire Guided Snorkeling

The Bonaire Guided Snorkel Program has been in place for many years, and offers great entertainment for all members of the family, no matter what age!  Caribbean Travel and Life Magazine has taken the Program one step further by launching a new promotional interactive web site providing images and information about the Program.

The main page provides a short overview about snorkeling on Bonaire while enticing images of snorkelers, topside Bonaire, or marine life one can see when snorkeling tickle the viewer’s fancy.

The site gets really interesting when you move to the interactive map.  With a birds-eye view of Bonaire, points included on the Guided Snorkel Program are indicated by pink snorkelers, while blue snorkelers indicate other excellent snorkel sites.  Simply mouse-over one of the snorkelers, and the site name will pop up.  Now click, and a new window opens with an image from that site with a description and/or history.  Other pages list accommodation and snorkel trip operators, but the best page of all is where you can enter a contest to win a free trip to Bonaire.  To view the site, click here.

It’s a great site to get acquainted with the Bonaire Guided Snorkel Program, which should be a must-do on everyone’s next Bonaire trip list.  Continental Airlines provides easy non-stop service to Bonaire from Newark and Houston.  American Airlines/American Eagle offers daily service through San Juan from many U.S. gateways.  Air Jamaica offers weekly service from U.S. gateways through its Montego Bay hub.  (Source: Caribbean Travel & Life Bonaire Guided Snorkel Program Web Site)