This place isn’t located in Sonora and doesn’t have to do anything with our recent trip, we actually went there a couple of month ago. But it was such a great place, so we felt talk about it. It’s only about 12 hours away from Ciudad Obregon!

Not many foreign people have visited the place - yet, at least that’s the feeling you get when you drive down the narrow roads to the little village San Blas. We’ve actually drove to it from an even smaller village about an hour away. While we drove down with our ‘guide’, who was an uncle of Estefania, he told us that this street used to be dangerous. Not long ago there were raids on it all the time, including car-napping, kidnapping, homicides and normal raping. Maybe he was still scared a bit and that’s why he didn’t leave us alone with a taxi, or he just wanted to spend some time with us. After over an hour driving down narrow and curvy roads in the middle of the jungle we finally arrived in San Blas. Estefania has been at the place before, but for me it was a total different experience, everywhere they sold fish, shrimps and candy.
La Tovara is just located a bit outside of San Blas, while driving to it we crossed a few rivers and each time we looked desperate to see a crocodile in it. Just a few meters in front of the entrance of La Tovara we actually saw some laying in the water and getting warmed up by the sun. A cold sweat went down in our necks… But then were we about to enter a reservoir where crocodiles just come out of every corner. Maybe it’s a bit paradox that some people who are scared of reptiles visit such a place.

Before you can make the trip you have to pay at a little office, it’s not expensive and totally worth every single Peso. You can choose between two different tours: One that takes you to the pool directly or one that will take you to the crocodile, pig and raccoon cages. If you ask me the second one is very amazing, well that means if you can overcome your fear of crocodiles. Next to the little office there are the boats, or nutshells. When I saw them I just said “Estefania those are our boats, won’t they flip over?” she insured me that nothing will happen and we entered the boats. You don’t drive the boat yourself; there is an ‘experienced’ boat driver that’ll take you through your tour.

In the start of the tour there weren’t any crocodiles, but lots and lots of little turtles and exotic looking birds. I’m guessing about 4 minutes in to the tour we encountered the first contact with a crocodile. Luckily it was just a small one, nothing that could get threaten our life!

We drove around curves and more curves and on every side was high grass and jungle like trees. So that we lost the orientation pretty quick, and I just thought “Don’t get lost, don’t get lost, boat don’t sick, don’t sick. I don’t want to fall into the water. Please oh no.”

All my fears got even stronger when the boats man stopped and said in Spanish something like’ Crocodile, crocodile!’. There was an about 3-4 meter long crocodile lying on a stone watching us, but he didn’t seem to be bothered from our sight, because he just kept on lying there.

A few more curves and some smaller crocodiles further, we came to the first end of the tour, where about half of the people got off. We then took off with a smaller group to the second part and even more exciting tour. Again we’ve saw a lot of crocodiles, birds and turtles, but then we arrived at the second part of the tour: the reservoir. In that place they grow crocodiles and keep some larger ones in cages.  Just one minute after we left the boats I got my second or third shock: A nasty looking snake was hanging on a fence, one that you don’t want to mess around with.

In this part of the tour we got an extra tour guide, which showed us all the different animals they held in the cages. Some of which didn’t look so safe anymore. Yes, you won’t believe me, but in one cage was a 4 meter long crocodile and there was a hole in the face. I’m guessing the very brave visitors put their fingers, foot and hands in it so they can touch the croc.  Next to the reptiles there were also some cute looking pigs. I don’t even want to think that they could become food someday, they just were so cute! While looking around we saw how a Mexican dude insults a croc, and it immediately snaps, luckily the fence was strong enough…

The tour took about half to an hour and was totally worth it. Then we got into a boot again drove back to the first stop - the pool. Calling it pool is probably wrong it’s more like a laguna. Located right next to the part where the crocodiles swim, actually it’s just separated by a single fence. Next to the laguna there is a little restaurant and a bathroom. The bathroom isn’t big but you can easily get changed inside, if you forgot to put on your bathing suit before. I for my part did it, while we waited for our ordered food.

They don’t have a too big selection of foods, but surely some good ones, if you enjoy fish. But when I got there again I’ll bring my own food though. Because the food I ordered were 3 fried fish. Till now it all sounds tasty no? That’s what I thought as well, but then when the food came I was pretty shocked to see that the fish still had eyes and everything else you expect not to find on your food on them. Estefania just told me, when she saw my shocked face, that here in Mexico the people want to have the face on the fish. For me that was enough, I wanted to be ‘Mexican’ so I tried to eat it anyway. Even though that’s one of the experiences I don’t need to make again.

After we both had finished eating our food and watched the fishes in the laguna and we decided that it was time to try and see how ‘cold’ the water was. While walking to the entrance of it, we saw two marines with big rifles and thought: ‘Good, they’ll shoot the crocs, if they try to enter the laguna, or will they shoot us if we leave the laguna…’. With that feeling we jumped into the laguna, the water was refreshing and it was kind of an adrenaline rush, even though there were many other people in it. But just the thought to swim in water with thousand of fishes and a just little fence between us and the crocodiles was enough for us not to stay in the water for long. All other people seemed to enjoy the water though, they jumped in from the side, swam to the fence and back and tried to chase the fishes.

“La Tovara is a fresh water spring. The water is crystal clear and perfect for swimming especially since they put up a fence to keep the crocodiles out. Swim at your own risk.” That is copied by the official page…

Those were the major parts of Las Tovara; I bet there are still parts we or I haven’t talked about. So you should consider of visiting - to see for yourself. This is definitely a place you want to visit, probably one of the best places in Mexico.