Dad travelled 8,000 miles to photograph penguins in daughter’s memory… only to discover it was wrong species
Inspired by card daughter Lisa sent him before she died, Roger Clarke spent £20k on Falklands trip to see King Penguins, but had to make second trip to Antarctica after learning they were Emperors
A DAD travelled 8,000 miles to take photos of a species of penguins in memory of his daughter – only to realise he’d snapped the wrong ones when he got home.
Roger Clark, 71, got a postcard from doctor Lisa before her death of some King Penguins.
Her dying wish was for him and her mum Lynette to travel because she didn’t get the chance to see as much of the world as she wanted to.
They went to South Georgia and the Falklands to photograph them but then spotted he had Emperor Penguins in his snaps.
So the pensioner ignored medical advice – because he needed an op to remove kidney stones - to go on a perilous 10,000mile trip to take get photos of the right species in Antarctica.
Tragic A&E consultant Lisa, 40 – mum to Lucy, now six - died in from ovarian cancer 2012 after a 15 month battle.
Roger said: "When Lisa was upset and dying in the hospice she had regrets about some of the travelling she hadn't completed and I vowed I would do some of that for her.
"After her passing I thought long and hard and decided I was well and fit so should do my greatest trip before I was unable to travel.
"I wondered what would be the ultimate thing for me to photograph to honour her memory, and I thought about penguins.
"My wife and I travelled to South Georgia and the Falklands to photograph King Penguins. At the time I thought this was my ultimate trip."
They spent £20,000 Lisa had left them on the holiday in November 2013.
But he added: "On our return we looked again at the penguin postcard and now with our new knowledge of penguins realised we had spent so much time with King Penguins and not Emperor Penguins.
"It became a personal commitment for me to return and photograph the Emperors to honour Lisa's legacy and get the same penguin that was on the postcard."
The grandfather-of-five then spent the next year planning an expedition to Gould Bay, Weddell Sea, Antarctica, which cost him £40,000 in total which he did last month.
Roger, form Chandlers Ford, Hants said: "I'd spent a year thinking about this, and I was determined to do it no matter what the risks were, but I was worried I'd never make it due to my health.
"I was even warned by a doctor not to go on the trip due to the health risks at my age, but I never, ever deviated from my plan to do this.
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"This expedition was the only way I could achieve my ambition. It was a year in planning and procuring expensive equipment for comfort and survival."
When he finally found and photographed the right penguins he rang his wife on a satellite phone to share the moment before writing his daughter's name in the snow.
He added: "When I finally got there I was just overwhelmed that I'd made it.
"In doing this, I feel I have paid tribute to Lisa's memory, and I wanted to tell her story to honour her last request not to be forgotten."
