Category: Adventure Sports

Blokarting in Bonaire

Bonaire is known as “A Diver’s Paradise” but we’re not just diving here. There are a lot of adventure sports in Bonaire and we want to try them all! When we explored the east end of the island, we drove past what looked like a go-cart track but the vehicles had sails on them. Intrigued, we investigated and then we had to go blokarting in Bonaire. Here’s what it was like to try this adventure sport.

Blokarts Bonaire
The blokarts waiting for adventurous riders!

About Blokarting

When we drove by Bonaire Landsailing Adventures, we were right to liken it to go-karting. They even call the sport “Blokarting!” because it’s using the wind for power. Get it? The business owners are originally from New Zealand where these vehicles originate. Yes, they shipped the carts all the way from New Zealand so people could go blokarting in Bonaire. It’s a new extreme adventure sport and we like to try them all!

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Bonaire for Hurricane Season

Modern day sailors want to avoid hurricanes more than almost anything including wearing shoes and giving up drinking. We came to Bonaire for hurricane season and are happy we made the choice. Here are all the reasons we are happy to be in Bonaire for hurricane season.

Bonaire is Safe

Located in the southwestern part of the Caribbean, Bonaire is south of the hurricane belt. This makes Bonaire one of the best Caribbean islands to visit during hurricane season, safe from storms and with lots of fun activities.

Safety on Bonaire extends to crime. In some Caribbean islands, theft and worse crimes are common. In Martinique, we got our gas tank stolen out of our dinghy while it was locked to our boat, and in other islands, dinghies and more are stolen if you’re not careful. While we remain diligent about locking our dinghy, these crimes are rare in Bonaire, another good reason to stay.

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Coral Reef Renewal in Bonaire

Since we’ll be in Bonaire for a while, we want to give back while we are here. I researched volunteer opportunities and found a way to help revitalize the reefs. I especially liked that it combined scuba diving and volunteering! We enrolled in a course and are now volunteering in coral reef renewal in Bonaire.

why coral reef renewal

Around the world, the reefs are in peril due to a multitude of causes like pollution, bleaching, hurricanes and diseases. Coral reefs are very important not only to the 4,000 species of fish who live there, but to humans by providing multiple medicines, and, for tourism. In Bonaire the reefs are the main source of tourism, with the protected marine preserve a lure for divers around the globe.

The good news is marine biologists have developed a way to regenerate the reefs. It requires constant maintenance and volunteers to help with it. We learned all about it last week in our course on coral reef renewal. The 2 day course included classroom lectures, videos and 3 dives.

the class

In the class, we learned about building and caring for coral nurseries. Bonaire has several of these nurseries and now that we’ve passed the course, Brian and I can help maintain and nurture the reef nurseries.

Reef Restoration in Bonaire
Learning how to tie the coral in our Reef Restoration class
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