Gear Colors

colors

You might not think that color matters much, but I prefer light, bright colors for any accessory that I might drop or set down. This includes knives, lights, bags, weights, and many other things. Yellow is my favorite color for this.

Despite the fact that black is really the only cool color for tech divers, I prefer Coast Guard orange uppers on my drysuits. These make you easier to spot, whether in the murk of the quarry, or drifting away on the surface of the Atlantic.

DIR

All equipment must be black. Ha ha - just kidding. You guys can take a joke, right?

...

No?

Note: There is actually a scientific explanation for the humorous chart above: Women see colors better than men. I'm not talking about colorblindness. Women have a fourth receptor for something like teal that men simply don't have. That means they have four primary colors, while men have just three. Obviously, men can see teal as well, but we have to make it from the other three primary colors.


Scallop

Scallops can swim in spurts by clapping their shells. Water is ejected backward through openings on either side of the hinge, propelling the scallop in the opposite direction - surprising to see for the first time. When not jetting around, they settle into evenly-spaced shallow pits in the sand.

The Deep Sea Scallop Placopecten magellanicus (right) grows to 8" and is found offshore, generally in water over 100' deep. The smaller but equally edible Bay Scallop Aquipecten irradians, to 3", is found in bays and protected shallow waters. The Bay Scallop has a deeply ribbed shell, while the Deep Sea Scallop has many tiny ribs.