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Snorkeling Bonaire: Snorkeling beginner
Bonaire Talk: Snorkeling Bonaire: Archives: Archive 2001- 2007: Archives - 2003-04-01 to 2004-04-30: Snorkeling beginner
Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Pontus Hamilton (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #3) on Tuesday, October 21, 2003 - 10:44 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

We are going to Bonaire in December (from Sweden)and although I have not been snorkeling before, the conditions on Bonaire seem to make that a perfect place to begin! Me and my father are both beginners but are reasonably good swimmers. Do you have any suggestions about how to begin, and where?

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By C. Kritagent (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #201) on Tuesday, October 21, 2003 - 12:24 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Get mask, fins and snorkle, find a place where the water looks nice and inviting and wade right in. The reef and the reef residents starts almost right at the water edge. Bonaire is indeed a perfect place to start.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By C Poteet (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #156) on Tuesday, October 21, 2003 - 12:43 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Pontus -

You are picking about as good a place as possible to begin your snorkeling adventures.

We are snorkelers and have snorkeled a few other places in the Caribbean and Hawaii. Bonaire is the best for quality of marine life, for clarity of water, for variety of snorkeling locations and for ease of entry (free, from the shore).

A couple of thoughts. There are practically no sand beaches on Bonaire. Most entry into the ocean (unless from a ladder at a resort) is by walking over very rough broken coral and limestone. Take some type of foot wear to make those entries painless. We use regular dive booties, others use inexpensive sandals, etc.

And, unless you have been as close to the equator as Bonaire, you can not imagine how intense is the sun. Consistent and serious sun protection is required. Including while snorkeling. You can get a very serious sun burn, and the resulting risk of skin cancer, before you realize it. Take and use lots of sun protection and you will have no problems.

Finally, for beginning snorkeling we would suggest the beach in front of Plaza Resort for ease of entry, calmness of water and outstanding variety of marine life. As C. Kritagent says, the adventure starts practically at the water's edge.

As you gain confidence, you will find there are literally dozens of locations up and down the west side of Bonaire that offer excellent snorkeling.

Please do write a trip report after you return to let us all know about your trip.

Charles Poteet
Dallas

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Rita Daggett (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #133) on Wednesday, October 22, 2003 - 6:04 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

It might be worth giving it a try at home before you go away (in a pool or even in the bath)- the first time I tried snorkelling (was an experienced swimmer) I found it almost impossible to make myself breathe with my face in the water!
It is important to get a mask that fits and is comfortable - so from that point of view you might be better off not getting any 'equipment' til you go (dont know what the range/standard of hire masks is on Bonaire tho) when you find a make which fits, buy one! A good dive shop will help you find one which does fit and MAY even be prepared to let you try it for real and return it if it doesnt fit.
As you are going to need some sort of shoes, consider getting flippers (!!) with a strap rather than a full foot - on the other hand, I've found I can snorkel quite happily without flippers at all. They can be a bit of a pain to put on in the sea.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By herman mowery (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #233) on Wednesday, October 22, 2003 - 9:46 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

By all means get yourself a GOOD mask. It does not have to be an expensive mask but it does need to fit correctly, a leaking mask is a big pain. Avoid the prepackaged ones, you must try on mask to find one that fits correctly. While it will cost more, go to a dive shop and have them help you find one that fits your face. I have tried on the entire product line of one maker and none of them fit my face, they all fit my wife. Fit is the key, not cost. Don't spend much on the snorkel, most any will do but try to pick one with a larger tube (bore) size. The very slim ones do not breath as easy. You may not want to purchase fins but I would suggest that you do invest in some form of dive bootie. These need to be of the hard soled varity. The soft sock like ones are not very good for the iron stone and coral rubble that are common on the shores of Bonaire. Your feet will thank you. You will also want some form of defog for your mask. There are lots of products on the market but I (and a lot of my dive buddies) use baby shampoo. I use it full strength, rub a DROP or 2 on the lens, let it dry and give it a quick rinse just before starting the dive/snorkel. Regular shampoo or dish detergent will work but taste horrible and stings your eyes.

The sun is another big hazard. While some recommend sun screen, I don't like it. It washes off, I can't help but wonder what it does to the reef and if you miss a spot you are cooked. A much better alternative is a nylon dive skin. They are a very thin nylon material, not to be confused with a wetsuit, although a 2 or 3 mm wetsuit is also a good alternative. It covers your entire body, has a very high SPF factor and does not wash off into the reef. Again, it's an investment but avoiding one Bonaire sunburn makes it worth every cent.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By v.cioffletti (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #8) on Sunday, November 16, 2003 - 2:20 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Very interesting recommendation on a nylon dive "skin" instead of sunscreen. Out of curiosity, how much would one cost? I DO use sunscreen since I burn easily.......fair skin, and not thick hair even.....so I still do have to put sunscreen on the base around my hairline and even on my scalp where my hair parts. But the idea of not slathering myself over and over is appealing. Selfishly, I never thought of sunscreen and marine life, rather worried about what it might do to my skin.

On the other hand, as a registered nurse who works in a surgical recovery room (can I get a job on Bonaire?! <g>), I KNOW what skin cancer esp. melanoma can do. Not a pretty thing.

Ginni in WI

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Carole Baker (Supreme BonaireTalker - Post #2831) on Sunday, November 16, 2003 - 8:44 am:     Edit PostPrint Post

Hi, Ginni....this past trip was a first for me...my scalp (right where the part is) burned during our first day or so. That has never happened to me before in Bonaire. (we, too, are snorkelers). I will remember to take precautions this June...I will apply sublock to my head/scalp as well as the rest of my body! That was not a fun experience. I guess my hair is thinner now than it used to be...part of the "aging" process, I guess! LOL. So, watch out for your head, too. You will fall in love with Bonaire as have the rest of us. Ayo. Carole

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By C Poteet (Experienced BonaireTalker - Post #165) on Sunday, November 16, 2003 - 2:07 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Ginni -

Here's are the sites for two different types of SPF 30 clothing I use:
http://www.sunprecautions.com (do a search on the word "water") and http://www.solarveil.com (I use the polo top and pants).

Both products work extremely well and both are cool when out of the water. The Solarveil product is especially cool as it is as very, very lightweight knit material. I use it practically year-around bicycling in Texas.

Neither is inexpensive, but they are less expensive than treating skin cancer (I know, I've had a melanoma).

You'll still need sunscreen on your head, but it takes a fraction of the time as compared to covering your whole body and it puts dramatically less sunscreen in the water.

Hope this helps.

Charles Poteet
Dallas

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Deana Alexander (BonaireTalker - Post #25) on Sunday, November 16, 2003 - 2:23 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

I always use a nylon or Lycra dive skin and also a hood made of the same material to protect my head, neck and ears. I have been burned on the top of my ears and the top of my head (my hair is thin). The hood also keeps my hair out of my face and eyes. I did have to put sunscreen on my forehead but that is all.

 

Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Jerry Besco (New BonaireTalk Poster - Post #4) on Monday, November 17, 2003 - 2:30 pm:     Edit PostPrint Post

Pontus,
A great place to start and an easy entry is the beach at the Plaza. A small fee for a chair will get you going. It's open to divers and snorkeling but the renting of a lawn chair will keep you from being told to leave. I use a .5 mil Scubapro wetsuit to block the sun.
Best wishes Jerry

 


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