Coral Restoration Foundation
Courtesy of Beth Watson ©
Coral Restoration Foundation
Nursery
CRF Bonaire hangs fragments of critically endangered corals from underwater tree structures that act as nurseries. These fragments grow until they are ready to be outplanted to Bonaire’s natural reefs.
Since its inception, Coral Restoration Foundation Bonaire (CRF Bonaire) has been dedicated to restoring Bonaire’s coral reefs through innovative coral nurseries and resoration techniques. What began in 2012 as a small project involving a few coral pieces in a single nursery at a local dive center, has now expanded to include more than 13,000 corals in nurseries placed around Bonaire, and over 20,000 corals outplanted back onto the island’s reefs. The project operates within the Bonaire National Marine Park with the support of a number of local dive centers and many volunteers.
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Coral Restoration Foundation
Outplanting
Once healthy corals reach “reef-ready” size they are ready to be outplanted. CRF Bonaire divers remove the now large coral fragments from the nursery and transport them to reefs around the island that need restoring. Once at these restoration sites, trained divers reattach the corals using different methods depending on the substrate available.
Get Involved
As a non-profit organization, CRF Bonaire relies heavily on volunteers to help complete its work. Any certified diver can be trained as a Coral Restoration Diver and volunteer to help restore Bonaire’s coral reefs.
To find out more, contact
Courtesy of David Fishman ©
Courtesy of Federico Cabello ©
Courtesy of David Fishman ©
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Reef Smart ©
Green iguanas are common at some of the beaches in the National Park
Bonaire’s National Park covers just under 14,000 acres (more than 565 square kilometers) of the island’s northwestern region – an area just smaller than the size of Manhattan New York. Originally known as Washington National Park, it was founded on May 9, 1969 when the owner of the Washington plantation donated the land to the government for use as a nature preserve. The park’s name changed to the Washington Slagbaai National Park in 1979 when the Slagbaai plantation gained protected status, leading to the successful preservation of an area equivalent to a fifth of the island of Bonaire.
The park is accessible through a single entrance located about 2.5 miles (4 kilometers) north of Rincón. There is a visitor center at the entrance, along with a museum, an open-air classroom space and restrooms. The park itself contains a number of hiking trails, cultural sites, two protected wetland areas – Saliña Slagbaai and Saliña Goto – and seven dive and snorkel sites located on the park’s more sheltered west coast.
STINAPA manages the park and charges a $25 USD access fee to all visitors. Divers can enter the park for free by bringing the receipt for their STINAPA Nature Fee tag, as well as identification. Visitors are not allowed to spend the night in the park unless they have reserved a stay in the Boka Slagbaai plantation house ahead of time.
When visiting the park, consider getting there early; the gates are open from 8:00am to 5:00pm but the rangers will not permit anyone to enter past 2:30pm. Divers should begin their final dive by 2:30pm to ensure there is enough time to exit the park. The roundtrip drive through the park can take two hours or more, depending on conditions, and rangers recommend visitors depart Wayaká II by 3:30pm, and Boka Slagbaai by 4:00pm, to ensure there is enough time to exit the park before the gates close. Rangers do a sweep of the park starting from the north at 3:30pm to make sure everyone is respecting these deadlines.
In addition to the dive sites discussed in the following pages, there are notable features along the rougher northern and eastern coasts of the park, including Playa Chikitu, which is one of Bonaire’s only true sand beaches. The east coast also hosts the Suplado Blow Hole, which is most impressive during periods of high surf, and the cliffs at Seru Grandi. This 190-foot-tall (58-meter) limestone escarpment highlights the interaction between sea level and the rising landmass due to tectonic activity. The massive boulders in this area are remnants of powerful tsunamis that lifted these rocks out of the ocean and deposited them on the flats. The area is definitely worth the extra drive time to visit.
Washington Slagbaai National Park
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Getting to and around the park
Head north out of Rincón on Kaya G.R.E. Herrera towards Washington Slagbaai National Park. The roads in the park are unpaved and at times can be deeply rutted; as a result, a vehicle with relatively high clearance is necessary while four-wheel-drive capability is strongly recommended.
In the rainy season (December through March) some dive sites may become inaccessible because of the condition of the road. Consider
calling ahead after a heavy rain to check on the status of the road before you drive all the way up to the park: +599-788-9015. It takes about 30 minutes to reach the park entrance from downtown Kralendijk.
Once in the park, the roads have a maximum speed limit of 15 mph (25 km/h) and are mostly one way. There is a short route that takes you directly through the middle of the park toward
Reef Smart ©
The Suplado Blow Hole on the northeast coast of the island
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