Yes, the captain of S/V Ubiquity faced another Dirty Harry moment when he looked at the kayak.

That kayak had transported Ubiquity’s captain and crew from their anchorage to the beach-side restaurant where they had been enjoying margaritas. The captain and crew depended on the kayak to return later to the boat. But the inflatable kayak was now deflated, flat.

The photo above, on left, shows the predicament. The kayak in the foreground looks not seaworthy in its deflated state. S/V Ubiquity in the background appears a long way away.

Knowing that cruisers must depend on their resourcefulness to overcome adversity, the captain opened the kayak’s repair kit and found glue, patches, and instructions. The instructions promised likely success for repairs up to 1/2 inch. The ripped seam on the kayak was open a full 4 inches.

Undaunted, the captain attempted the repair, and pronounced satisfaction with the result (See above photo, right).

Captain and crew now returned to their original intention of walking around the town and seeing the small museum. Before they launched the kayak the captain insisted on margaritas (two for him, one for the crew) to alleviate anxiety about the upcoming test of the repair - paddling the kayak out to S/V Ubiquity at anchor.

Another small point: there was one life jacket for the two paddlers. The captain insisted the crew wear the life jacket, but the crew nonetheless attempted to abandon the kayak trip by soliciting a ride to the sailboat on a ponga.

But the captain would not abide by the crew’s mutiny. It was a Dirty Harry moment, the captain explained. Captain and crew must find out together, paddling the long distance to the sailboat, if feeling lucky (the captain) or not feeling lucky (the crew) was correct.

Do you feel lucky, punk? Do you?