Day 10 Bonaire 11-1-10

Well, Tomas has not released his grip on our weather here. The surf was strong and the wind made the water too choppy to attempt snorkeling. So we decided today was the day we visit Washington Slagbaai Park in north Bonaire. I will do another post about the park later.

When we got to the gate of the park, we were warned not to snorkel or dive due to the high, crashing wave breaks. Okey Dokey-no problem. The ranger also warned that the roads through the park were not in great shape. The gates to the park close at 500pm. We must be back no later than 500pm. (and if we aren't, do you lock us in or do you come find us?)

The high crashing wave breaks were unbelievable. Awe-inspiring. They were crashing 20-30 feet ABOVE the 20 foot high cliffs. Other visitors were looking out for each other by warning others to stay away from the edges or you could get dragged in. One local told us waves like these only happened once or twice a year. It was awesome.

And the roads? Worse than "not in great shape". A 4x4 rig would be groaning at those conditions, and we were in a 2 wheel drive manual transmission mini truck. R-O-U-G-H. But it was an interesting drive. We saw more flamingos at the various lakes in the area and of course the ever present goats and cactus everywhere.

Did you know that flamingos can only eat with their head upside down?