happened is anyone's guess. While we would all like to believe it happened that way because we would all like to think that we would have that kind of grit when the time comes, the reality is that the answer lies between him and his maker. No one will ever really know. It is my understanding that he didn't leave any note and expressed a desire to write another book. He was sailing again with the stated intent of reaching the Amazon, Orinoco and Rio Negro for the material. His mind was slipping in the later years and he suffered mental lapses from time to time but it was most likely the inherent instability of Spray that took him out. It's a wonder it didn't kill him sooner.