We are anxiously looking forward to our first trip to Bonaire. We will be staying at Captain Don's Habitat and are wondering if anyone who has stayed there recently can fill us on on what to expect. How are the rooms, their restuarant and bar, and how is the shore dive at the hotel? We are not particularly adventurous, we more prefer relaxed dives. Can anyone suggest some shore dives that will not be too physically taxing for us? Thanks.

Laura ,We have never stayed at Captain Don's but the restauraunt and reef outside the facility is great! Captain Don has made quite a name for himself on Bonaire and Curacao so I'm sure the rooms and ammenities are top notch. You will have plenty of "easy" shore dives to choose from..Captain Dons, Ole Blue, Windsock, Bari, Something Special, Coconut Beach...the list is endless...enjoy!

Laura, I was a guest there in Aug. and loved it very much. I had a deluxe suite with a HUGE balcony and a large room with full bath. It was wonderful. Dining on the sea wall at Rum Runners is divine. Jack runs a smooth operation..I recommend it w/o hestitation.

Annie

Thanks very much for the helpful information. We will be in Bonaire in August traveling with a Fort Worth, Texas local dive shop. Our group leader is the best! We went to Grand Cayman with him last year and enjoyed the heck out of it. I had read several posts here and on other scuba boards about theft crime on the rise in Bonaire. As an ex-New Yorker all to familiar with high crime, I was not happy to hear this. We plan to follow the suggestions of others in using common sense means to stay clear of theft crimes.
We have been looking forward to making our way to Bonaire for more than two years now. We plan to dive at our leisure, sightsee and generally "chill out". Does anyone know if the pool at Captain Don's is of swimming quality or just mostly used for "novice" divers practice? The pool at Grand Cayman was salt water and only used for practice dives. Also, I think I read in someone's trip report there is a car/pickup rental office right at Captain Don's. Does anyone know if this is accurate?

I don't think the pool at Habitat is used for diving at all (at least by adults) - that's generally all done in the confined water area in salt water.

The pool is definitely swimming quality, but not Olympic size by any means.

Jake

Laura:

Having just returned from our trip and having picked up our AB Carrental truck at their office at Capt. Don's, I can assure you their office was there and probably still is ;>). I believe their normal hours there are 8 am to 5 pm (less sure of the closing time than the opening time). If you go there, please say hi to Elsie for me.

You'll find the office by walking straight past the roundabout in their parking lot, looking for an office at the right end of the main building in front of you (the front of the office faces north).

Have a great trip!

Regards,
Peter

Laura, others can surely provide more knowledgeable answers as to which shore dives are "easy", but as newly certified divers, my son (13) and I (49) found all the ones we did to be very "easy". We dove from shore at: Small Wall (our rental villa happened to front the shore within about 150 yards of Small Wall, but you could probably also swim there from Don's-- around 600 yards away-- and their reef is probably very similar); Andrea 1 (enter the water just to the right of the trees at the shore's edge); Angel City; and Eden Beach (access by Wannadive dive shop). Jessie Armacost's book is excellent to give you conditions and hints for all sites, plus of course you can ask the people at the dive shop you use. But I thought it might be useful for you to hear from some "newbies" that indeed the shore diving is like everyone says, easy, easy, easy. The hardest part is getting into and out of the water when there are slippery rocks or coral pieces to step over, which can be awkward with the scuba gear and weights on (I especially felt like a beached whale each time I exited the water, after having felt weightless for a time, then suddenly being so darned heavy!). Best to take your fins off while the water is still a few feet deep to give you buoyancy (BCD inflated and snorkel in your mouth), then walk out of the water slowly and carefully, watching your step on the rocks and timing the surge. Sorry I've probably made it sound more difficult than it really is by explaining too much.

I'll also go out on a limb (?) and recommend using your compass. Of course, we had just learned this skill in the cert course, so I was eager to try my hand at it over longer distances. But I did find it quite useful to be able to come up near shore at approximately the same place we went in. It's not that you could get lost out there, since generally the slope of the bottom shows you which way to go to get back. But with even a mild current you could easily drift 100 yds or more while going out and back over say 45 minutes. No big deal to swim back that distance, and I don't know what more experienced divers do about underwater navigation, but personally I found it reassuring to "know" where I was headed and to be able to come back to roughly the same point when surfacing. In the case of following a wall parallel to shore, we tried both depending on timing (e.g., 20 minutes swimming into the current and 15 minutes swimming back with the current), and making note of an obvious coral formation or something else to find our exit point. A combination of these two methods worked for us at Andrea, so we came up right where we had gone down. Again I'm sure this stuff is old hat to experienced divers, but it made an impression on me in our first few OW dives.

Regards,
Peter

Peter,
Thanks for the information. I especially appreciate the details on the shore diving entry and exiting. I was also concerned because my dive buddy and I just don't seem to be very good navigators. We are not exactly beginners, but we are not yet advanced either. We have managed to get lost underwater several times, resulting in long swims back to the boat and/or shore which can be rather exhausting. Your descriptions and comments in this area were very helpful. Can't wait to get to Bonaire and start practicing my navigation skills (or lack thereof) again. But for now I'll be at the health club swimming laps (have to get back in shape for the long endurance swims back to shore, LOL).
Thanks again,
Laura

The real "trick" to navigation in Bonaire is to go straight out from shore until the bottom takes a sharp drop, it's almost a 60 deg or better drop so you can't miss it and then look carefully for an unusal bottom feature ...rock, coral head, ect and make a mental note of it ( I have been known to drop a small bouy). Then look at the soft coral and the fish (they will be heading into the current) and start your dive into the current following the contour of the slope. Be careful on your way back as it takes a lot less time and effort to return. When you get back to the "noted" spot, simply do a 90 deg turn away from the deep water. Shore will only be 50 to 150 ft away. Don't tell your buddy what you are doing and impress them with your great nav skills!! By the way, there is a small fishing boat that is sunk on the dropoff directly in frount of Capt Dons dock with a rope leading from the boat to the dock, no way to get lost on this dive!

Oh yea, one more suggestion. Take a pair of hard soled booties with you. The coral and rocks on the shore are not too comfortable on bare feet or the soft soled booties.

Laura:
I highly recommend Captain Don's. My family has stayed there twice in the last 2 years. Accomadations great, bar great, food great 85% of the time, dive operations outstanding, reef and dock great. Can't say enough.

Mark

Thank you to both Mark and Herman for all the helpful information. I am looking forward to having a great time at Capt Don's and hope to use Herman's pointers for improving my navigation skills. Thanks again folks!
-Laura

Laura,

Add us to those who praise Capt Don's. We were certified there last September, and could not have been happier with the staff (all departments) and the accomodations. We had absolutely no crime problems, but a couple of others have - they seem to be pretty isolated incidents, and no more of a problem at Don's than anywhere else on the island. Use the safe in the room, and leave nothing on the patio/balcony after dark.

Rum Runners restaurant and bar are very nice. Their gourmet pizza is a favorite of many. Make friends with Max, who tends bar and manages the restaurant at times. For a change of menu and scenery, you can dine at two excellent restaurants just south of Capt. Don's, located at Buddy Dive and ??? (sheesh, someone help me out of this senior moment). You can wander between the three resorts by following the walkways near the shore. (There is a gate that is locked after 11 pm or so).

The dive staff is absolutely great - helpful, competent and friendly. As others have mentioned, Jack Chalk runs a great organization.

Have fun!
Steve (who can't wait to go back)

Do you mean Lion's Den at Lion's Dive Resort?

Thanks Steve. This trip will be our honeymoon and I can't think of a better way to spend it. We just can't wait to make that first dive in Bonaire.
-Laura

For those that know Capt. Don...
His birthday is June 25th I think.
Maybe Jack Chalk can post how we can get B-day cards to him.

I suspect B-day cards addressed to Don c/o either Jack at H or just c/o H will get to him. They rather like him at H. :–)

Hi Peggy,

Send your cards to

Capt. Don Stewart
% Capt. Don's Habitat
P.O. Box 88
Kralendijk, Bonaire
Netherlands Antilles

I'm sure he will love them. BTW, for those that didn't know, the Captain and Janet returned from New York last evening. Don was one of 50 individuals that were honored by the Caribbean Tourism Organization for significant contributions to tourism in the Caribbean. The award was presented at the Annual Caribbean States Ball at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. He even had to wear a tuxedo. Pictures to come later.

And thanks everyone for the comments above.

Last time I saw Don dressed up was when he was the Sea Rovers' Diver of the Year!! Early '80's!