Esteros del Ibera

Argentina

"Ibera" is Guarani for glittering waters.

Estancia Rincon del Socorro

Argentina’s biggest unsung attraction, Esteros del Iberá is a breathtaking wetland covering up to 13,000 square kilometers (estimates vary), nearly 15 percent of Corrientes Province. Recharged almost exclusively by rainwater, it’s really a broad, shallow river, covered by semisubmerged marsh grasses, reeds, and other water-loving plants; it flows diagonally but almost imperceptibly from the northeast toward the southwest, where the Río Corrientes enters the middle Paraná. There are also, however, open-water stretches like Laguna Iberá, a 24,550-hectare lagoon that’s protected under the Ramsar convention on wetlands of international importance.

In terms of wildlife, Iberá is an American Serengeti—while it may lack the total biomass of Africa’s famous plain, the variety of species and the sheer numbers of birds, mammals and reptiles is still awesome. For these reasons, it has attracted the attention of international conservationists such as former Esprit clothing magnate Douglas Tompkins, who has purchased several estancias in the area in the hopes of preserving their natural wealth.  http://theconservationlandtrust.org

And Iberá needs defenders, as the marshes have a fragile ecology imperiled by mega-hydroelectric developments of the Yacyretá dam, north of the city of Ituzaingó. As runoff from Yacyretá’s rising reservoir seeps into Iberá, deepening waters threaten to break the link between the marsh vegetation and the dissolved sediments from which the plants derive their nutrients.

Orientation
Esteros del Iberá stretches over an enormous area, but the most convenient access point is Colonia Pellegrini, a placid hamlet of wide dirt roads on a peninsula jutting into Laguna Iberá, 107 kilometers northeast of Mercedes via RP 40. While Pellegrini has no formal street addresses, it’s small and compact enough that orientation is no problem.

Getting there:
From Posadas the drive is about 45 minutes on paved highway and then around 3 hours via Ruta Provincial which is a combination of "camino ripio" (gravel road) and sections of sandy road and sections of dirt road which can be very muddy. Traffic is little and far between. There are no facilities along the route. Only a 4x4 is suitable to navigate this route.

It is also possible to fly from Posadas directly to the air strip at Estancia Rinconc del Socorro, if you are staying there. The flight is via single engine 4 seater air craft, about 1 hour 15 minutes.