What is the best color?

[bradxb]

This may turn out to be one of the dumber questions I have asked, right up there with "Can an aluminum tank contribute to Alzheimer's?".

QUESTION: In your opinion, is one color better than another for a sit-on top kayak to be used for scuba diving in the Atlantic and for general recreational paddling in a wide variety of environments in South Florida?

Issues I am thinking about are visibility, fading, antagonizing/attracting predators (remember "yum-yum yellow"?). There may be issues I haven't considered.

Thanks!

Brad

 

[dkramer]

Dag, I've never heard of "yum yum yellow". Mine is yellow, been divin' off of it for 8 years now & I'm still here. I've never noticed critters chasing my boat. I used to fly as an observer with the CAP & the best color for being seen is hunter orange. It is the only color which is not found in the natural enviornment. That being said, I've never seen a hunter orange yak. I think yellow is the best color because I think white or green will more likely blend in with the water. especially if it's choppy. Just my 2psi.

 

[Sh@rkW@tcher]

Dana, are your eyes failing on you, or your memory? My yak is hunter/blaze orange!
"yum yum yellow" is a nickname navy sailors gave to the mae west vest after biologist determined that sharks can see colors and yellow was the preferred color for them. I haven't noticed any special interest in my yak by fish.

 

[dkramer]

Well, my eyes are probably failing me but your yak is not what I call hunter orange. Hunter orange is more like a hurt your eyes, keep ya awake at night, florescent orange. But your yak is a good color & you are right, it is of the orange-ish tint. Mine actually is not yellow, it's Mango.

 

[bradxb]

"Hunter orange" versus "florescent orange" versus "mango"??

What's wrong with orange? Just orange?

More evidence of the feminization of diving.



I know. I'm behind the times. Went into Starbucks this morning and asked the lady for a cup of coffee. Black. For a minute there, I thought she was going throw me out.

 

[Doc Intrepid]

Ask a rescue chopper pilot what color is best spotted on the surface of the ocean from the air...

 

[dkramer]

Well, what color are life rafts & survival suits made out of?

 

[solensdotter]

As the others have said, go for a color that contrasts with the water. Not just for SAR (hopefully you'll never need that), but more likely to keep your yak from getting run over by members of the boating community - yellow, orange, red are all good...

 

[DebbyDiver]

Mine is bright yellow and I like it not just for reasons cited above, but also because it is easy to spot floating at the surface above me.

Brad, you are just up the street, why don't you come to a Kayuba meeting some time? Third Monday of the month at UnderSeas Sports Fort Lauderdale.

 

[Walter]

This may turn out to be one of the dumber questions I have asked, right up there with "Can an aluminum tank contribute to Alzheimer's?".

Why do you think that's a dumb question? As far as I've been able to determine, no one knows, but they possibly do.