Beautiful Bonaire


Six times is a charm.  That's how many times I've been to Bonaire.  It was surreal to sail to Bonaire, with my family, on our boat.  Of all the places I've been diving, this is by far my favorite.

There is something about being able to dive almost an entire island - by shore.  Wade into the crystal clear water, and you're off!  However, this time it was a little different.  We used our dinghy, and dove some of our favorite sites, from the comfort of our own boat.   Friends of ours spent almost two months in Bonaire - diving.  They dove over 50 dives - all with the convenience of their own equipment and dinghy.

The highlight for me - by far - was doing a family dive with all four of us!  Michael did his first dive - in 10 feet of water.  We all had a BLAST.  There was nothing like seeing your little boy figure out how to clear his ears and take off, with daddy of course holding on to him - as he was a little unpredictable shooting off in one direction or the other chasing fish.  It's safe to say, we are now a family if divers.  Of course, we still have to go very slow, and shallow, but that is OK.  We are seeing the beautiful world underwater - as a complete family.  Something I've always dreamed of happening.

Before I start to get nasty emails about 'How dare you dive with your young kids', we are using our SNUBA gear (click here for details) - and are VERY careful not to let the kids run loose.  It is a very controlled dive, in shallow water.  No BCD, limited dive weights, and shallow water...all a safe combination when going slow in a controlled environemnt.

Field Trip on Mooring Ball Bonaire
Sarah Diving with Soft Coral
Together Underwater
One of the biggest surprises we had in Bonaire was the cruise ship traffic.  I'd never seen a cruise ship in Bonaire - ever.  At one time there were two LARGE ships in port, disgorging thousands of camera toting tourists flooding the streets.  While we've taken a cruise together in the past, we've become less fond of this method of travel...not to mention the 'vibe' that sets into an island when the streets are jammed with 'Bubba the Love Sponge' t-shirts.

Cruise Ship Coming into Port in Front of Field Trip
It wasn't ALL diving for Field Trip.  We rented a car for two days, and took our kids exploring around the island.  The highlight for the kiddos was the Salt Flats (they like the bubbles) and seeing the wildlife in Slaagbai National Park.

Family Together in Bonaire 
Happy, Happy, Happy....
The Elizabeth 'Headlock'...Love Michael's Expression!
Sarah Taking Picture of Kids on Beach
Michael Looking at Lighthouse - Slaagbai National Park
View - Slaagbai National Park

Here is the newest video.  I put this together over several days while in Santa Marta, Colombia.  It will be our last video for at least a month.  Sorry, but we are heading to the San Blas (Kuna Yala) areas of Panama this weekend, and we will not have decent internet until we are in Colon, Panama. 

I've included three more videos.  These were filmed about 8 years ago, on some dives we did with Sarah, my sister, and our good friends Todd and Trina Folkenberg.  They are short, and not up the quality standards we have now...but they will show you some of the additional underwater sights of Bonaire!






Comments

  1. "Field Trip": My favorite family show ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  2. God, I love your videos and blogs!!! Big shout out from the Netherlands!

    ReplyDelete
  3. God I love your blog and videos. Big shout out from the Netherlands!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Love following your blog, your travels are an inspiration to us. Our boat should splash this March, fingers crossed, you know how it is!!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Love following your blog, your travels are an inspiration to us. Our boat splashes in March, fingers crossed, you know how it is!!!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Beautiful pictures and stories of your adventures....my kids enjoy reading your kids' posts, too....keep up it up kiddos. Happy Sailing!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Beautiful pictures and family adventure stories.....my kids enjoy reading YOUR kids' posts, too....keep it up....making us look forward to our very own sailing adventures in a few years from now :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. I see you made Latitude 38 ........ keep having a great time .....

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Ulithi Atoll, Federated States of Micronesia (FSM)

Skinny Dipping

Off the Beaten Path - Cruising Sumatra's West Coast!