Gemma Stockmans
Whale Watching Guide
Her experience has always been closely connected to the ocean. For over 15 years, she has worked as a diving instructor, spending her life both above and beneath the surface and exploring the underwater world. Spending so much time on boats has also allowed her to develop a strong connection with the ocean as a whole, as well as with what is happening beneath the surface and everything we can observe from the boat.
After so many years at sea, she has learned to pay attention to small details above and below the surface.
She chose Lobosonda because it enables her to spend her days doing what she loves: being out on the ocean, sharing the experience with others and helping them to discover and understand the underwater world.
She has always been fascinated by how much we still don’t know about the ocean. We learn something new all the time, but there is still so much out there to explore and discover. For her, the excitement of not knowing exactly what you might see or learn each day is part of what makes being at sea so thrilling.
She also loves the opportunity to share her knowledge of the ocean and its inhabitants and raise awareness of the incredible world around us. If she can inspire people to leave the boat with greater curiosity, knowledge, and respect for the ocean, that makes the experience even more meaningful to her.
She loves the ocean because there is always more to discover. Even after spending so many years in and around the sea, it still surprises her. Being underwater offers a completely different perspective on the world, whereas being out on a boat allows you to observe the abundance of life around and beneath you.
She also loves the feeling of being part of a world that we still don’t fully understand. The animals we encounter have their own behaviours, personalities, and ways of communicating, and every encounter is unique. She finds it really special to be able to witness these moments and share them with other people.
It’s hard to choose just one. She would have to say the spotted dolphins because of their playful and curious behaviour. They always seem full of energy and interested in what is happening around them.
She also has a soft spot for pilot whales. She loves seeing how closely they are bonded as a family and how they move together as one group. There’s something really special about witnessing those strong family bonds.
Then there are the sperm whales. Their connection to the deep ocean fascinates her. They can dive to incredible depths and spend much of their lives in a world about which we still know very little. Having spent many years diving and exploring underwater herself, she particularly finds this side of them fascinating — they remind her just how much there is still to discover beneath the surface.