Thaddäus Haenke

Thaddäus Haenke was a badass botanist who worked around the turn of the 19th century. He is responsible for bringing some of the earliest specimens and descriptions of the flora of the Pacific basin to Europe.

Why a badass? His journey to Cadiz arrived late, so he missed the expedition's sailing for Montevideo. Go home? Nah, he caught another ship, which wrecked off the coast of South America. He swims to shore and makes his way to meet the expedition, but it has left without him again. So this guy proceeds overland, crossing the Andes, collecting specimens and descriptions along the way. On reaching Valparaiso he rejoined the expedition almost 9 months after its departure from Cadiz. They explored the Pacific basin as far north as Alaska, and onward to Philippine archipelago, Australia and New Zealand.