Ymke Lathouwers

Originally from the flat Netherlands, Ymke’s passion for the outdoors, her urge for adventure and desire to explore more of this vast, beautiful planet we live on, has taken her around the world. She has always had a special attraction to the Polar Regions and their wildness and solitude. This Arctic fascination brought her to Svalbard for the first time in 2018, where she has now been living since early 2021. She wrote her master thesis at the University Centre of Svalbard (UNIS) in glacial geomorphology, studying landforms and sediments in the landscape to reconstruct the extent of past glaciers and ice sheets.

Prior to joining the Quark expedition team, Ymke worked on a dive boat on the Great Barrier Reef, as an outdoor instructor in the Belgium Ardennes, and as a guide in the Galapagos Islands. She greatly enjoys the combination of adventure and education on expedition ships. She thinks that there is no better place to share knowledge about glaciers, than in a zodiac right in front of the most beautiful calving fronts any of us will ever see.

Ymke believes the best way to learn more about the magnificent, yet fragile, Polar landscapes that we are privileged to explore, is to experience their grandness for yourself.  Her advice to you is to try to experience this unique environment with all your senses. There is often more to see, hear, smell, or even feel than you might think at first glance. Take some moments to embrace it all!