Scuba Diving – Daily Outdoorsman

Bonaire – Tailor Made – An Uncharted dive site…

November 1, 2017November 3, 2017
by Sid Smith

Tailor Made is a dive site you will not find in many of the guides you can find in print. It’s a hidden jewel and only recommended for more experienced divers. This is my favorite dive site to date on Bonaire. There are reason’s it’s not frequented by many divers. It’s located far north up past the refinery very close to the northern most tip of Bonaire. Not only is this such a great site to dive, it’s a fun drive to get there as well.

Bonaire

Bonaire–Invisibles

October 30, 2017November 3, 2017
by Sid Smith

The Invisibles has made my top five favorite sites at Bonaire. Beautiful Reef’s, bountiful aquatic life, and interesting channels that cut between the reef. When you enter the water like many dive sites you will encounter a sandy bottom without much to see. However as you venture out to the bouy I recommend you drop down about 10 yards before you reach it. If you are slow and careful not to get too close you will find garden eels in the sand before you get to a sandy channel that cuts down through the reef.

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Bonaire

Bonaire – Aquarius

June 10, 2017October 13, 2017
by Sid Smith

Aquarius is not particularly a difficult entry, however if their is a moderate surge like we experienced this past January 2017 you will need to take care when entering. Once you enter the water depending on conditions their is a rocky ridge that may be above the water or just below. You will also want to surface swim out to the drop off of the first reef to conserve your air. Like many sites on Boanire, Aquarius has a double reef system. The first reef is suitable for beginner or Open Water certified divers starting at roughly 26ft and continuing down to 105ft. Diver should stay within the limits of their training and take care not to go deeper than their training allows for.

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Aquarium Dive

Aquarium Dive – National Aquarium

June 10, 2017October 12, 2017
by Sid Smith

Have you ever visited an Aquarium and saw people swimming around inside the tank that appear as if they are part of the attraction? Well they sort of are. Many of the Aquariums around the world offer a unique way of visiting their attractions. Unlike the standard Aquarium going if you are a certified diver and your willing to pony up some extra dollars you can swim the fish instead of viewing them through a piece a glass.

Scuba Equipment

Review: Aqua Lung Legend LUX Supreme

September 4, 2016October 17, 2017
by Sid Smith

I’ve now owned my Aqua Lung Legend LUX Supreme for about a year and a half and logged nearly 50 dives with it. I’m the type of person who typically wants the latest and greatest new device every year, but when it comes to this regulator I haven’t ever thought about getting a new one. I’ve only tried about a dozen or so other regulators and before I owned the Aqua Lung Legend LUX Supreme I never realized much a difference from one to the next.

Bonaire

Bonaire – Angel City

September 4, 2016October 17, 2017
by Sid Smith

Angel City, appropriately named due to the large number of Angel Fish that seem to frequent this dive site. This site was an easy entry, but you will want your snorkel for a surface swim out to the reef. There is a buoy anchored just before the start of the reef at roughly 16ft deep. From there the reef descends to roughly 59ft. At the bottom of the first reef is a sandy bottom that is sort of a narrow shelf before you come to the second reef. The second reef then descends to roughly 150ft.

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Scuba Equipment

Review: Aeris A300 CS OLED (Oceanic VTX)

September 3, 2016October 17, 2017
by Sid Smith

I have owned the Aeris A300 CS (Oceanic VTX ) for nearly 2 years. Now that I have finally gotten around to putting this blog up I felt it was time to do a review. I went with the Aeris A300 CS (Oceanic VTX) for a number of reason. It was small, had a color screen, could pair with multiple transmitters, and it had a very sleek look. Before I get into my thoughts on the unit below are its features:

Bonaire

Bonaire – Hilma Hooker

September 3, 2016November 3, 2017
by Sid Smith

A little history

Besides being another one of Bonaires great dive dives sites the Hilma Hooker has an interesting story. The Hilma Hooker dive site is a wreck dive and the ship has an intersting story as to how it ended up on the bottom of the sea. The ship itself wasn’t always named the Hilma Hooker it was sold a number of times. Launched in 1951 the ship was named Midsland, it was later sold in 1964 and named the Mistral. She was then sold again a short time later in 1967 and renamed to the William Express. In 1975 the ship then sank off of the Dominican Republic, was re-floated and then sold yet again in 1976 and renamed the Doric Express. She was sold once more to San Andres Shipping from San Andres Colombia and renamed to the Hilma Hooker.

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Bonaire

Bonaire – Calabas Reef

September 1, 2016October 13, 2017
by Sid Smith

Calabas Reef (a.k.a Kalabas Reef) is the house reef for the Divi Flamingo. Having stayed at the Divi Flamingo we ended up diving this reef a number of times out of convenience. The Divi Flamingo has a pier in which you use for entry and exit to this site. If you are staying at the Divi Flamingo this pier is also where your lockers, air tanks, and weights are located making is extremely convenient. We ended up doing our check dive, a few early morning dives as well as a night dive here.

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Scuba Certifications

Advanced Open Water Certification

August 30, 2016October 14, 2017
by Sid Smith

Maybe you have your Open Water certification or you are thinking about getting it and don’t think you want or need to become Advanced Open Water Certified. I want to take a minute to explain why you should. Getting Open Water Certified is great! You now have your C-Card and you can go anywhere in the world and show that you are a certified diver and dive, right? Not exactly. There are dives you may want to go on where the dive outfit that is running the dive may require a minimum of Advanced Open Water. Take reck dives for instance. A lot of Dive Outfits that run wreck dives will require you to be Advanced Open Water Certified.

Category: Scuba Diving