Chile | Argentina | founder | chief executive

pumalin park project

just north of the futaleufu, reaching from argentina to the pacific, the massive pumalin park project is 800,000 acres of pristine, temperate rain forest. open year-round, the park offers hundreds of miles of trail along cliffs and fjords (where visitors can view hundreds of seals), and through forests thick with coihue and alerce (ancient trees similar to the california redwoods). michimahuida, one of dozens of active volcanos in chile, rises some 8,000 feet into the clouds.
but pumalin also has a softer side that includes plush cabins, as well as a restaurant offering the finest local organic produce. the cabins are open year-round; offer private bathrooms, heat, and hot water; and can accommodate up to five people each.

the brainchild of douglas tompkins, founder of esprit de corps apparel, and his wife, kristine, former chief executive at patagonia, pumalin began with the purchase of a 64,000-acre ranch in 1992. eight years later, and still privately owned, pumalin could be donated as a natural park by tompkins. cabins start at $50 a night. contact pumalin project, buin 356, puerto montt, region x, chile; 011-56-65-250079; or in the u.s. at (415) 229-9339. —