Yesterday was the last day I was able to dive. For those who are not SCUBA divers, the rule is that you do not dive within 24 hours of a flight due to complications that can arise at higher altitudes with the excess nitrogen in your bloodstream from breathing compressed air. It was a very sad moment in the vacation when I was returning my gear, but all in all it has been a very successful scuba trip. After a very long hiatus, I am back to feeling comfortable and competent under the water. And now I can dive with Nitrox, too!
Yesterday I was signed up with John and Dee for a two-tank boat dive. As usual, diving with John and Dee was quite relaxed and enjoyable. They truly are the best dive buddies EVER! During the two dives we saw turtles, lots of file fish, a cloud of black durgons (the sexiest fish in the ocean, in my opinion), more eels than I've seen so far on this trip, some tiny shrimp, and I finally got to see a lion fish - both exciting to see and sad to see all at the same time. The boat was very full, but the people were great. I am finding that on Bonaire , where people are here primarily for diving, everybody has very good diving manners. They spread out and find their own space and very rarely, if ever, get into yours.
After lunch John, Dee, and I had planned to do two shore dives from the dock at the resort to finish out the diving portion of our vacation. However, after we entered the water it was apparent that the current was quite strong. At first we found that the dive would still be doable, but after descending to depths ranging from 60 - 80' deep, it was clear that the current was too strong and getting stronger. John made the decision to abort the dive when he was kicking as hard as he could and not going anywhere. (I was holding my own given the strength of my leg muscles from riding my bike and the fact that I wasn't as deep as John, but I wasn't seeing much because I was working so hard and I was using a LOT of air with all the physical exertion.) We floated back to the starting point in record-breaking time without even kicking a fin. Between kicking so hard to get out and moving so fast on the way in we didn't see all that much, but John did spot a sea turtle who was fun to watch.
Upon exiting the water I encountered a woman who is visiting Bonaire as part of a group from a dive shop. She is a dive-master here on vacation. When she asked me how the dive was on her way into the water, I responded that the current was too strong to dive. Knowing that I was returning to diving after a long break, she gave me a very placating smile and said, "We'll just have to see about that." Her group didn't even make it out from the dock when they got pulled away by the current. Swimming hard to get back (my guess is she doesn't ride a bike as often) she was humble enough to admit to me that I really did know what I was talking about. The current was intense and nasty!
With no boat to make in the morning, Dee , John, and I spent a lot longer at the bar than we had in the past. I slept in, I’ve been getting up at – today I awoke at , and I've spent my morning reading, blogging and just relaxing. I am planning to do a snorkel from the dock in a short while (assuming the current has calmed down) and spend my last day just taking it easy and enjoying the warmth and sunshine. There is a huge party at the resort this evening with a BBQ dinner and all the rum punch you can drink from . Somehow I'm guessing this is going to be another late night. Tomorrow morning I will be packing and preparing for my trip home. My guess is that the next post will be written from Massachusetts. Sadness!!! I REALLY like it here ;-)
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