I’ve been there a couple of times and if that can help someone, here’s what my bag contains to make sure the trip is a success!
I don't pretend to know everything. ...Just sharing my personal experience. So, if anyone has better or different suggestions and want to share a specific item, please feel free!

A couple of pair of sailing cloves:
Skin softens very quickly in 84 degree sea water. When sailing bare hands, blisters come in a matter of hours for me! This is inevitable, unless you have serious callous hands. I bring at least a couple of pair of cloves of different brands - if not more as they wear off quickly! Open finger gloves are OK but I prefer full finger gloves. I think Reid is sailing with football receiver gloves (very grippy). I plan on trying this as well.

Anti-blister strategy the first couple of days:
1. Sailing for an hour,
2. Come back to shore
3. Rinse hands under fresh water
4. Pat-dry
5. Relax with a good drink for 30-45min
6. Let palm dry out completely
7. Go back sailing
8. Repeat till sunset!

Bandages:
After 6 or 7 days sailing several hours each day, I cannot avoid blisters even with gloves. The key is to avoid having them to become opened and exposing raw lower layer skin. Painful! That will ruin your sailing. Solution: I bring bandage tape (the stickiest, not too wide and most resilient is best (i.e. cloth like). Waterproof band aids sized for finger blisters (very thin, non-padded is best). I also use a small pair of scissors to reshape/resize bandages to best conform to the anatomy of the area to protect.

Open blister strategy #1:
If the skin still holds well and the blister is just slightly opened, I’ll leave the skin flap on as it offers a cushioning layer when gripping the boom. However, I put on waterproof bandages and criss-cross tape it + gloves. Not the most comfortable initially, but better than watching from the beach everyone else having fun! At night, I remove all bandages and let it dry.

Open blister strategy #2:
If the skin over the blister is peeling off almost entirely, I cut off the skin flap and protect it with bandages. At night I also coat it with a layer of Polysporin ointment (not Neosporin) and a regular bandage. Then before sailing, clean-off the ointment with warm soapy water, dry well and cover with waterproof bandages + gloves before sailing. Polysporin promotes faster skin healing and recovery. It appears to be less likely to provoke an allergic reaction than Neosporin. BTW, I’m not a physician, so use at your own risk!

Summer windsurfing boots:
The sand is abrasive and small bits of dead corals pepper the lagoon and I experienced first-hand (ha!) how sharp they are on my feet! I try to spend more time on than in the water but, launching demands a bit of walking in the shallows with the equipment in tow. I use a pair of Atan Reef Kevlar. The Kevlar is supposed to offer a better protection and resilience of the material against rocks and corals. Seems true.

Waterproof sunscreen:
Needless to say that close to the equator, the sun is unforgiving to my excessively-while northern skin! I use sunscreen in spray (legs, arms) and in sticks for the face because I don’t want to use my hands to “butter” over the oily and slippery stuff! This keeps my hands ready for a good grip on that boom!

Hat or helmet:
Great to protect from scalp burns. I have both but lately been using a Garth helmet. I like that better than a floppy-soaked piece of fabric over my head. Maybe there’s a good hat for windsurfer out-there, but I haven’t found one I like!

UV-protective rash guard:
It all depends on whether you are sun-sensitive. I am and I always wear a rash guard to cover my body because: I can’t stand having to “butter” all-over, I burn more than I tan – at least the first week under the sun, and I don’t have a silhouette that makes me want to expose more skin that I really need! I use long and short sleeve indifferently. I take 5 or 6 on a trip to make sure I have one dry when needed.

Harness:
I like mine, so I take it with me even though it takes some space in my case.

Snorkel gear:
Bonaire has amazing protected shores to explore underwater so I bring my Target-bought snorkel gear along and leave it the car because there are 100’s of places to stop and take a dive to see Nemo!

Pictures/Video:
I bring a GoPro with all is accessories! I also invested in x3 64GB SD card and x3 batteries so I don’t run out of space or juice too quickly. I also have a spare external Hard Drive to download footages-of-the-day to free up my SD card for the next sessions. With the help of a regular smartphone, there’s a handy little device that will help you download on an external Hard Drive without a computer. For example, the RAVPower FileHub Plus does that plus doubles as an external battery and wireless travel router. Very handy.
www.amazon.com/dp/B016ZWS9ZE/ref=sspa_dk...e9-8ccb-0556752ac422

A Cellphone waterproof pouch:
At least it won't get damaged by sand and water. Like this: www.bigwinds.com/nsi-go-bag-magnetic-dry-bag

Hope this helps! Cheers!

The glove thread....

The right gloves for the job
windsurfillinois.com/index.php/forum/win...t-gloves-for-the-job

How about bug spray? Any mosquitos, other nasty biting bugs? I would also bring a potent antiseptic like iodine and a few other essential medicines and sterile pads just in case. Super glue is quite effective at holding blisters closed.

Ady wrote:
Yes, désinfectant, oxygen peroxide or similar stuff is great. They do have supermarkets with first aid over the counter pharmacy, so it’s not an absolute necessity to bring that stuff over.
Good point on bug spray. Also available on site. Noticed a few mosquitoes in the evening but nothing dramatic except that some that might carry dengue fever from what I red. Don’t know about Zika...

Bonaire is a territory of the Netherlands, so everything is pretty much to Westerrn standards.

Thanks for the tip list! I am definitely going to try out the Polysporin since I'm allergic to Neosporin. My last big open blister was up at Little Sable on one of those days when you just can't quit sailing... found a used sandwich bag in my car (with a little peanut butter as an anti-inflamatory) for a "glove" then wrapped it with duct tape

Please use reef-safe sunscreen. It may even be illegal to possess certain types of sunscreen on Bonaire. Many places have passed such laws.
My sister-in-law Amanda is a diving instructor and has lived in the Caribbean for years; she's made us aware of the very real damage certain chemicals cause to the reef. The spray-on sunscreens are another environmental problem. I take an extra bandana and use it to wipe on sunscreen without getting it on my hands.

Also from Amanda - when diving / snorkeling, DO NOT TOUCH ANYTHING! This is for the animals' benefit and yours! There are a lot of creatures down there that are covered in all sorts of spines & toxins. While in Belize, I (accidentally) learned why "Fire Coral" is called that, and it was a lesson that lasted several days.

And yep, taking my harness, GoPro, sailing shirts, foot protection. And watching this webcam when I need a lift:
www.bonairewindsurfplace.com/?page_id=972

Drew

Andrew Scheidler wrote:
You are raising something I wasn't aware of. Thanks for that. The question is what to buy? Most major brands seem to struggle to catch-up to the science and labeling/claims are "obscure". I didn't search very long but there doesn't seem to be a product that is 100% reef-safe yet. There are better options than others though. Common sense (also recommended by scientist) is increasing the use of UV-clothing in the water (which I do)! That in itself reduces the quantity of product applied on exposed skin and consequently significantly reduces the amount of stuff released in the water.

A couple of articles here. Don't know how these articles are really well-researched, but at least there are few lists of reef-friendlier products here it seems.
www.consumerreports.org/sunscreens/the-t...reef-safe-sunscreen/
www.hawaii.com/blog/reef-safe-sunscreen/

The way to go: Edwardian era bathing suits! (1901-9010)

My hands after one day of windsurfing in Bonaire without gloves and without taking any precaution...

Ouch! That hurts.

A few days ago I was talking to a windsurfer that showed me a trick: He spread some kind of wax on his hands before sailing. I can't remember exactly what kind - it was solid but slightly soft... I'll have to ask him what it is exactly. He said the stuff doesn't make his hands slippery but rather sticky. It doesn't leave nasty residue on the boom, and prevents the skin from softening too quickly in warm water.

Something I did when going to Bonaire the second and third time, is to repetitively sail for an hour and come back to rinse dry hands for 30 minutes - especially the first 2-3 days. Requires discipline! When dry in the evening and before sailing in the morning, I also use liquid band-aid on the small blisters to create a slight protective coating along with the obligatory tape and all. I've also been tempted to dig hols in the backyard to build strong calloused hands before heading out-there!