I have been lurking on this site for some time now preparing for our trip to Bonaire. I have been fortunate to gather an enormous amount of information and felt as though I should share our experiences to benefit others.

This was the second trip to Bonaire for some of us, and the first trip for the others. My wife & I had been to Bonaire in October 1999 (pre-Lenny), but this was the first trip to the ocean for my 14 year old daughter.

Air Travel:
We flew Air Jamaica from Chicago-O'hare to Bonaire via Montego Bay. I have absolutley no complaints! Everything went smmoth as silk - all connections, arrivals, luggage, etc. The only minor inconveinence was that they don't seem to carry very much beer on the plane. When I'm on vacation, I like to have more than just one beer. But this is so trivial, I probably shouldn't even mention it.

Resort:
Once again we stayed at Sanddollar. Again, no complaints. The place was only about 1/3rd full, so there was never many folks around. The entry (since the peir is gone) was really pretty good. I was expecting the worse and was pleasently surprised. To be honest, we really didn't miss the giant stride at all. The shore entry is very easy. The staff at the resort and the dive shop are always friendly, and we were always treated politely.

Food:
We did most of our breakfast and lunch stuff in the room. We hit Cultimara for cereal, chips, soda, and lunch meat. It worked out nice, since everyone was on kinda a different schedule during the the day, then we would meet up for dinner. We ate at Den Leman's twice. I highly recommend the Saturday night Bar-B-Q. Much better than I had expected. Also ate at Compadres - decent mexican. Part of our group made a stop at Zee Zicht (spelling?). They said it was good. We also ate at the bar right next to Zee Zicht's - can't remember the name. My wife & daughter had the hamburgers and said they were fantastic. I had the steak sandwich (but I'll have the hamburger next time!). We also had lunch at the restaraunt out by Sorobon, on the road back to town. I can't remember the name, but I know I have seen it on this board. Anyway, we were all very pleased. We also picked up some pizzas one night at the little pizza/sub place across from KFC. The pizza was really quite good. And by the way, I would not recommend KFC - the chicken is not cooked using the same recipe or spices as in the states. Not to say thats bad, but it doesn't really taste like the "original recipe".

The bar/restaraunt at Sanddollar was just opening around the time we were leaving, so we didn't get a chance to try it. That will happen on our next trip.

Diving:
To say the least, we were absolutley astonished! I had been reading all the reports about how Lenny had ruined all the shallow reefs and such. Well, in my opinion, there really wasn't much damage. There is some rubble in the shallows, but it was explained to us that this has always been there. Its just that it had been covered with sand, and the Lenny waves pulled the sand back into deeper water exposing the rubble. The only evidence that we could find of damaged reef was in the extreme north dive sites, in Washington-Slagbria park. It was obvious that there was extensive damage to this coral, however, the marine live was still very intense.

Other dive sites we visited: Hilma Hooker (two times - huge schools of everything, including tarpon), Weber's Joy, Alice in Wonderland, Ole' Blue, 1000 Steps, Bonaventure, and several sites in the park that I don't know the names to. One other site that we dove was the Salt Pier. I wasn't too keen on doing this dive, but it turned out to be one of the best I have ever done - and I have over 300 dives! The fish life was incredible. Plus we saw squid for the first time. We also saw the biggest baracuda that I've ever seen. And the reef on the back side of it looks pretty prestine. Probably because it doesn't see alot of divers. I highly recommend this dive site. We also dove Bari reef multiple times. We also did Bari reef on a couple of night dives.

Critters Seen:
We saw a turtle, squid, lobster, crab, sea horses, spotted drum, frogfish (I still don't know how my wife founf that thing!), octopus, eel, and baracuda. We also saw the typical blue tang, parrot fish species, yellow snapper, angle, bone, jack, etc. etc. etc. We also spied dolphin in the channel twice. Once at an extreme distance, and the other right at the reefs - next to the moored boats by the Sanddollar entry.

Regrets:
We tried to find the WebCams, but were unsuccessful (to be honest, we didn't try all that hard - too many other things to do).

Also, I had read that Micheal Gaynor was in need of turkey stuffing, specifically Peperidge farm. Well, I looked at several different stores in my area and all I could locate was Stove Top and Butterball. I'm sorry Mike. I'll try again on my next trip.

Thank yous:
It was amazing how much information I gathered from this website. I appreciate everyone's effort. It made our trip much easier. And I looked like some kind of Bonaire expert to the rest of the folks in our group. They couldn't figure out how I knew all of this stuff!!

Future plans:
We are already talking about returning in October - just six months away! Until then I will dust off my drysuit and "suffer" through the summer wreck diving in the great lakes. Brrrrr......

nice report - thanks for sharing

Great report Dave - especially appreciate notes on restaurants and dive site. We plan to do Salt Pier this time and 2 of us (the ladies with the cameras) plan to do the Town Pier on a night dive providing it's available. 22 days and counting

Gail,

Have you ever done the town pier before? If not, let me tell you my experience from several years ago.

One: There were 3 or 4 boats doing the dive from differnet dive shops all at one time. Figure that to be about 40-50 divers in the water around the pier. We were constantly bumping into people and vis versa.

Two: There is tons of crap in the water - at least when we were there. Bottles, tires, etc. Also, there seemed to be a layer (or scum) of oil on the surface.

We opted this trip to not do a night dive at the town pier. Our night dives were at Bari reef. We saw huge tarpon, octopus, eels, (one of our group actually got pictures of an eel eating a small octopus!).

I, personally, would not recommend the town pier dive. I think it is highly overrated, and in fact considering the number of divers in the water in limited (night) visibility, I consider the dive slightly dangerous.

Theres just so many wonderful places to dive, I can't figure out why anyone would WANT to do the town pier.....

Just my $0.02 worth. Have a wonderful trip. I'm already counting the days until we return.

P.S. I always spell "restaurant" wrong.

Gail,

One other thing, if you have never done the Salt Pier let me give you my thoughts.

On our trip, Salt Pier happened to be the third dive of the day, late in our trip. When I return, I will do it this way: I will make it no later than the second dive of the day, and earlier in my trip so I can return.

The reason I would make it the second dive is so that I can go deeper. Start at the main junction of where all the piers come together. From the parking area, follow the "shore" pier until it tees with the "docking" pier (or if you're a compass nut like me, its on about a 260 degree heading from the parking area). This is right above where the reef starts. It looks as though in about 50 feet of water is a beautiful reef. Explore the reef, then work your way back up to the pylons of the main section. Thats where all the marine life is at. Huge schools of everything inside the pylon "circles" (you'll know what I mean when you see them). Also, for some reason, I think we had the best visibility at Salt Pier than we did on any other dive - probably approaching 100 feet.

You'll have to get permission from the harbor master at Salt Pier to do the dive. Sanddollar dive shop took care of this for us. We made the request in the morning, and by noon we had the okay.

Enjoy......

There is another option for the Town Pier. Go with Dee Scarr and her Touch the Sea program. It is during the daytime and it's a shore dive. No 40+ divers in the water. Usually 3-4 people max. She showed Jake and I all sort of interesting stuff - frogfish, seahorses, water flow through sponges using dye, feeding moreys, octopus, and the absolute best - I scratched the chin of a Scorpionfish named Rodney (as in "I get no respect"). He came bounding over the reef to greet Dee sort of puppy dog like. (Dee is only on island November - June.)

You can also arrange through just about any dive shop to get one of the divemaster to take you on a private guided dive usually during the slower afternoon time but also at night.

You should plan these dives ahead because you can't dive the town pier when a ship is docked there.

Enjoyed your report, Dave!

Your report wasn't too long and it covered a lot of topics. You need to check out the Italian restaurant above ZeeZicht, it's great.Nice report, we really enjoyed it!!

Your report wasn't too long and it covered a lot of topics. You need to check out the Italian restaurant above ZeeZicht, it's great.Nice report, we really enjoyed it!!

Wednesday evening at the Town Pier can be a zoo. But
there ia another option: hire your own dive guide--one
is required to dive there under the rules. That is
inexpensive (less than a boat dive for 2) and you can
go when you want to--later is better, and stay as long as
you want. Your dive op will be happy to set it up for you
with one of their people.

Great trip report! Thanks for sharing. I will echo same later posts on night diving at the Town Pier. We did that 3 years ago...what a fiasco! Since there are limited nights that one can get permission from the harbormaster to dive at night (and probably even less now because of cruise ships), there is a crowd, almost everyone has a humongous dive light and/or camera light, it is a zoo. We saw absolutely nothing that night that we do not normally see in a daytime dive in Bonaire. Do your night dives elsewhere, or do the Town Pier in the daytime if possible. It was so congested, we lost track of our "dive guide" (whome we had paid, since you can't go on your own), and each of our 4 ended up leaving the water separately, totally fed up. I will never forget the image of one of my best friends, marching across the plaza back to where our truck was parked, madder than a wet hen!!

The good part of that night, is that only 4 out of our group of 6 did the dive, and the other two had a KFC dinner waiting for us at the house when we got back...who cared if the recipe was different, it tasted heavenly!

On another subject mentioned, the restaurant next to Zee Zicht that Dave mentioned, is the Late Night Grill. For 2 trips now, when we get to Bonaire quite late at night, we get the luggage stowed at our house, then head for the Late Night Grill for a burger...can't be beat! I think they are open until about 2:00 a.m. or so.

When we have friends visiting who want to do the Town Pier, I always take them there after 9pm (I qualify as a local dive master :-) - but I don't ever do it for hire).

By going at 9pm or later we are usually the only ones there - avoids scenes similar to those in ET The Movie, where poor little ole' ET is being chased through the foggy woods by lots of people with flashlights.

Jake

Jake,

Virginia makes it sound not worth attempting to plan a
clear night dive at the Town Pier; you make it sound
easier. Three years ago I found it fine after 9pm as you
do now; didn't try it earlier.

What is your perspective: should people try? It would be
too bad for the madding crowd to take away a superb
site.

Thanks everyone for your input on the Town Pier dive - we have not been in Bonaire for years and did do the dive when were were last there. It was crowded and that's why the husband's don't want to do it this year. Us 2 ladies however would like to do it for the photo opts but not in the crowds described here. I remember the problems we had keeping an eye out for our buddy, the garbage in the water, and the less than polite other divers who kept bashing into us. We will check with the D.M. at Sand$$ about a separate town pier dive after 9pm. I'll also speak to Beth (my fellow u/w photographer) about going with Dee. Providing she doesn't mind cameras on her dives the 4 of us could do that.

Glen,

My suggestion would be that people do a Town Pier day dive with Dee Scarr and then a private (post 9pm) night dive with a local dive master. The contrast between night and day is amazing in some ways. It also helps with orientation at night.

The really neat thing (for those that haven't done this before) is that the Town Pier is something of an underwater garbage dump - tires which have fallen off of boats where they were being used as bumpers, fishing line, fish bones, etc. - but with incredible sponge life, and equally incredible large versions of many fish and crustacean species (more food available thanks to stuff coming from "above", therefore less competition). Some unusual critters too - rare crustaceans, a bat fish, jackknife fish, etc.

Jake

I am being persistent here because there are a lot of
Boarders who have not dived the Pier and the repeated
references likening it to a 'garbage dump' really bother
me. Some trash, yes, more than I want to see, but
'garbage dump'?!!?. Piled high???

Webster's dictionary defines garbage as 'animal and
vegetable waste, as from a kitchen'. (You don't put
'trash' into the 'garbage disposal' unit in your kitchen,
do you??) I rarely saw garbage diving the Town Pier
from 1983 to 1998. Have things gone down that far on
Bonaire in the last three years?? It is part of the Marine
Park, albeit with special regs.

The zoo happens because several dive ops go to the
small area at the same time, unlike the moorings where
only a single boat can tie up at any one time. Divers let
themselves be herded into that small area all at the
same time. What else but chaos. First time, shame on
the dive ops, second time shame on the divers.

Many (most here?) shore dive to escape the herds and
have a full tank time underwater unhassled watching
fishes instead of swimming up current and back to the
boat. And do it away from boat times. A first stage of
enlightenment. Do the same at the Town Pier--make
your own thing happen.

Dee Scarr is fun to dive with and accomodates
photographers well--she is an accomplished one
herself and understands what you want to do. The times
I have been with her she sets up situations for the
photogs benefit and poses well herself. She shows you
many things you would not have seen for yourself and
makes your further dives more interesting. That said,
the Pier can be done very nicely with 'just' a dive guide.

As Jake said, do it one way or the other, or, best, both
ways. But do it away from feeding time at the zoo and
don't be discouraged by the term 'garbage dump' used
here.

This is longer than I realized but, as I said at the
beginning, 'garbage dump' and discouragement of
diving the Town Pier for diver-controllable reasons
really bother me. Whew!!! Now, down off my soapbax.
(Has anyone lately seen a soapbox you can stand on?
Once upon a time...)

Jake, you didn't address directly the liklihood of
permission in my last. Are there dive op boats there
most non-ship nights now?

i would say that the town pier is not a garbage dump but has various trash items on the sea floor. alot of those things, now have coral living on/in them and creatures in them- so they have become part of the sea floor environment. it is interestingly not a bunch of unpleasant junk. it is junk that now is home to something.

barry and i dove it twice when last on bonaire. once as a night dive and it was too crowded with various groups of divers but still very interesting and once during the day as part of our underwater photography class and it was much better. there is alot of life there.

i enjoyed my night dive at the bari reef much more. but it was an experience to be remembered. i am always worried i will be in someones elses way. so i prefer to be on a more open area with other divers.

No, the dive ops are usually there together the same night. The one scheduled boat dive at night seems to always be the same night and at the same time just after dark.

For anybody who is wondering why there would only be one scheduled boat night dive per week, it's because most divers who want to do night dives just dive straight from their resorts. They can fall into the water anytime at their leisure. And the dive ops can always add more boat night dives if they have enough divers who want to go - just ask.

And a human's garbage can be somebody's home. (Although I don't support adding to it.) Moreys love old tires. Octopus like bottles and pots. The Town Pier is the traditional site of the yearly underwater cleanup effort. Only new garbage is removed which leaves old tires and other items which have been encrusted with corals, sponges, and algea over the years. The wooden and cement structure of the pier itself has become the foundation for more corals and sponges to grow on. The damselfishes often place their purple egg patches on the pilings. Schools of fish seem to hang around piers maybe hiding from birds, I don't know.

'Trash', bloody hell, not 'garbage'!!! Tires and bottles
are 'trash'. Calling the two the same thing is a parochial
American thing.

Frogfish like the piling coral and sponges, too. And fish
school in shadows, as under Samur and the ships and
boats at piers and floating sargasum weed and whale
sharks. Each of the piers suspended over the water on
pilings has a resident population. The ships at the New
Pier collect baitfish schools patrolled by jacks and
tarpon. But, of course, no one dives out there now
because it is against the rules. Before that...

The posts on this board are always helpful, even educational! When the experience that I wrote about above occurred, the divemaster (from Captain Don's) did not offer any other options besides the regular, almost-at-dark standard time to start a night dive. So this year we didn't even consider attempting the Town Pier at night again. Now I know better, and the next time in Bonaire we will speak up & explore other options! Thanks to all who've been there/done that. (Hope this isn't a double post - my PC lost the internet connection in the middle of posting a previous attempt.)

Well, I guess I started this whole mess....

It's my first set of postings (and potentially my last), and I guess I hit a nerve somewhere along the line.

Let me re-iterate: The experiences I had diving the Town Pier were, in my opinion, beyond the type of diving I prefer to do. Being trained as a divemaster, by a very safety conscience instructor, I felt that the conditions that are forced upon a diver doing a BOAT night dive at the Town Pier jeopardize safety. That is what I was trying to relay to Gail. I never once used the term "garbage" or "trash", Glen. I said "crap" (sorry, but I didn't look that up in Webster's). And there was crap in the water. I personally brought back three plastic soda bottles to the boat. There were cigarette butts in the water, and some sort of film on the surface. Don't know what, but I hate to think that some cruise ship emptied their toilets before putting to sea.....

I was unaware of any other way to do a dive at the Town Pier. Not being the expert that you are, how would I know if the resort didn't brief us on it?

My experiences tell me that the Salt Pier is a much better dive. Better visibility, fewer divers, and easier/quicker to get permission. And theres no need to take a guide or divemaster with you.

Like I said earlier, it's just my two cents worth. Apparently, for reasons I don't understand, a lot of people like the Town Pier. I did not. Sorry to step on the toes with my opinions......

Dave,

The nerve (mine from the outflow above) was not
triggered by any one person. Just at the general
'trashing' (:–) ) of a favorite and famous dive site
because of the way the dive ops do it. I guess I should
have included them in my diatribes because it is
obvious from all of our comments--mine included--that
they should find a way to spread out the night diving.
For the benefit of the Pier, the divers and, ultimately
their business.

When only one or two divers are under the Pier, it is
tremendous. I like it because of good dives there over
the years, the obverse of your reason for disliking your
experience. The one time I went by boat I took a small
excursion and so didn't experience the zoo. It can be
populous even without the boats also--again after 9 or
10 pm can be magical if you accept that it is a town pier
and not a pristine reef. I was one who wanted to clear
out all the trash--completely--and keep it clean.
That--even doing it gradually--was ruled out by the park
management, so... That was a few years ago.

I do expect the Salt Pier is even better. Much less diver
traffic too. (I hope our words don't start a stampede of
diving there!!) My one attempt at the Salt Pier was
aborted due to a stumble on entry causing a minor
camera housing flood. Have you done it at night?

I expect that relatively few people dive 'privately' with
their own guide though it can be done anytime of day.
The dive ops probably will arrange it, if reluctantly
because of their planning for dive vs surface time for
their guides. Many rotate between shore, dive and
on-boat duty to control decompression exposures. The
guides do have days off and are on their own then.
There also may be non-dive op indivduals who can
guide--I think Michael G. used to do that.

Enough from me. Don't mind the sensitivities, please.
With Bonaire, our glass is so near full!!!

Dave - no nerves hit as far as I can see - just some friendly and animated discussions. It's helpful, as you can see, because it has enlightened those of us to the opportunity of diving the Town Pier later than the normal crowd does it. Yes it was "messy" there the last time we dove it but as stated one person's (fish's) mess is another's home. Oily slick? Could be two things - all boats put off a bit of oil in their operation - also friends of ours were there in early March and there was a slight oil spill. I cannot remember the source but they said they did swim through some oil on the surface because of this. We will probably re-think diving the Pier with the masses - if only to protect our camera equipment from getting bumped and flooded by possibly inexperienced, possibly nervous divers. If we can afford to dive with Dee (I think I saw that it cost $90 per diver) I would love to do that also. What a hoot - tickeling Rodney's chin!

Dee is wonderful!
If you can do it, sign up with her!

I hear Malin at Sand $ does a very nice night dive at town pier.

Thanks Alan/Joan - we'll check with Malin the first week we're there so that the 2nd week when we are diving we'll have something lined up. I'm still going to work on doing a dive with Dee.

I hope you have better luck with Dee than we have -- every time we've been on-island either she's been off-island or we had colds and couldn't dive! Some one of these days, though, we're gonna do a dive with her... :)