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It is barely light out, but I can discern the silhouettes of palm groves against the bright sienna earth. My driver and I are traveling towards Estancia Rincón del Socorro on the border of Esteros del Iberá, in the northeast province of Corrientes, Argentina. Iberá sits atop the largest aquifer in South America, and the word literally means “bright waters” in Guaraní, the language of local natives spoken even today. As we arrive at the estancia my host, Valeria Cook, greets me with a warm kiss on the cheek à la Argentine, and shows me to my cottage, Ñandubay—the three cottages here are named after native trees, recently reintroduced to eradicate the exotic invasive eucalyptus.

In the trees’ shade, ostrich-like birds and children roam placidly. The buildings of the estate were built in classic Corrientes style with white adobe walls and slanted red zinc roofs. Inside, every room is furnished with antique or recycled English pine furniture, cotton linens, and Argentinean watercolors of birds. The bathrooms have antique basins and bronze fixtures purchased at flea markets. And although the main lodge dates back to 1896, it was restored to perfection by its American owners, Douglas and Kristine Tompkins.

The Tompkinses acquired the land in 1997 from private owners and opened the estancia in 2004, in an effort to bring awareness to the fragile ecosystem of the Iberá wetlands. Douglas founded the North Face sports clothes company in 1964 (and, before that, Esprit de Corps with his former wife). Kristine was CEO of Patagonia for twelve years. In 1992, Douglas created Pumalín Park in Chile, and the Conservation Land Trust—the world’s largest private land conservation project—dedicated to the re-wilding and restoration of natural landscapes. In Iberá, the CLT is also involved in sustainable agriculture and cattle farming.

The main reason to stay at Rincón del Socorro is to witness the diverse wildlife of the Iberá Lake. Masses of water hyacinths and fern capture organic particles that eventually form floating forests, hosting more than 350 species of birds. Caimans and playful capybaras glide among water lilies. Caimans become mobile as the sun heats their bodies and only then do they begin to fish. In Iberá, their diet consists mostly of piranhas. On coral tree branches, rufous ovenbirds, the national bird of Argentina, build perfectly round homes of mud and sticks. Wattled jacanas fly over the water, displaying iridescent reds and yellows. White-neck herons take off like planes above our heads, and streaked flycatchers and scarlet-headed blackbirds balance atop swinging grass blades.

Almost everywhere you look there’s a different bird species, and, from October on, visitors will be able to see the re-introduced giant anteater for the first time since 1835. On horseback rides through the estancia’s savannah, you’ll also see howler monkeys and rare jabiru cranes nesting on trees, and on moonlit rides there are armadillos, too. At the nearby Estancia San Alonso, which sits on an islet in the middle of the Paraná Lake, there is dorado and piranha fishing, although a recent draught has lowered the number of fish. San Alonso is only accessible by a fifteen-minute private plane ride from Rincón del Socorro, and once you get there you’ll be the only person within hundreds of miles.

Douglas Tompkins first became interested in the Iberá wetlands when he was invited by the Argentinean Government to participate in conservation projects in the country’s northwest. During his visit, he flew over Iberá and saw the damage caused by overgrazing and rice plantations. “When you are in your sixties, you don’t have a lot of time to undo human damage,” he says. “Even in your forties, you don’t have a lot of time.”

Douglas’s ultimate goal is to give all his land to the government and turn it into a national park. During my visit to Rincón del Socorro and San Alonso, I saw how the CLT’s many programs not only benefit the environment, but also the lives of present and future generations of thousands of Iberá people. Rooms from $170 per person, including three meals, all soft drinks, horseback and mountain bike rides, Wi-Fi in the main lodge, and guided visits to Iberá Lake. Bring your bathing suit; the estancia has a swimming pool that’s open year-round.

Getting There Estancias Rincón del Socorro and San Alonso are on the border of the Iberá wetlands, in the northeast province of Corrientes, Argentina. The estancias are located about 475 miles north of Buenos Aires.