In Toche there are different natural attractions that you should know about, so we recommend you arrive at the town before 8 in the morning if you are staying in Ibagué. You can get to the Toche farmhouse from Ibagué in different ways that we will explain later.
It begins with a short tour of the town since its inhabitants have endeavored to give it a new positive image for the visitor. Have breakfast in one of its restaurants and then take a short walk to the viewpoint on the hill next to the houses, there you will see the whole town from the top. Another of the places to go within the corregimiento is the National Bridge, which has been built three times due to the floods that the Tochecito River has had throughout history.
The next tourist attraction is the Cerro Machín Volcano or Machín Volcano. It is famous for being the second most dangerous active volcano in the world because you can walk on its largest crater which has a diameter of 2.5 kilometers. The volcano has no eruptions, it is part of the central mountain range, and after going through a humid forest inside the mountains, you can get there on foot from the town or by Jeep. If you hike to the summit you will see small craters in the jungle that release steam.
The next thing to go to in Toche is the Palma de Cera Forest, which has become a tourist attraction in Tolima for its more than 600,000 adult palms. There is also an incalculable number of baby palms that have not yet reached their maximum height, they take 60 years to reach it and it is said that each ring on their trunk symbolizes a year.
The Tunnel of Life is another of the natural resources that you must visit, for this you must walk on the vegetation that surrounds Toche. You will find montane trails in the middle of huge rocks of more than three meters that form tunnels where you can appreciate small waterfalls that fall on the rocky walls. Climbing a little further along the paths of this jungle you arrive at the devil's cave. It is a big cave that you can access and explore but be careful because it is full of bats
Finally, relax in the afternoon in the hot springs. There are farms where they have small natural pools with springs of mineral waters that come out of the ground at more than 5 °C than the surface temperature. In these, you can enjoy a deliciously hot bath after eating a typical peasant lunch.
It is important that to tour the forest and other natural attractions you do it with a guide and preferably a Toche inhabitant. This way you will be able to know not only the sites mentioned in this travel guide but also the history of the town along with other natural attractions such as more ancient tunnels, several bird-watching routes, waterfalls, and even the ancestral culture of an indigenous cemetery. From Ibagué some companies offer ecological tours for one day.
How to get to Toche Tolima?
To get to Toche from Ibagué you must take a bus heading towards Cajamarca, then in the town square, you must take one of the jeeps that go to the Toche hamlet on an unpaved road. The journey takes about 3 hours and a half in total.
Once you arrive in Toche, the entrance to the forest is 30 minutes away by car, although you can also do this route on foot.
The town of Toche
The town of Toche is a small forgotten path between the mountains. His story tells that years ago he suffered from the country's armed conflict but after the peace agreement the guerrillas abandoned these lands.
Although the town was greatly affected by these armed groups, its community was concerned with giving the corregimiento a new face and opening the doors to ecological tourism. When you visit it, you will see peasant houses with facades embellished with many colors, friendly inhabitants with stories to tell, and in charge of teaching tourists the importance of the ecosystem that surrounds the volcano.
Palm wax
The Wax Palm, scientifically known as ceroxylon quindiuense, is a palm native to Andean humid montane forests and is considered the tallest type of palm in the world. Their height can reach up to 60 meters and they can live up to 200 years. Its trunk is surrounded by rings that contain wax, which in the past was used to make candles, hence its name.
86% of the existing wax palm in Colombia is found in the dense forest of Toche, Tolima. Which makes it the place with the largest population of wax palms in the country, much larger than the one found in the Cócora Valley.
Bird watching
Amid the natural wealth of bushes, trees, pines, and jungle you can practice bird watching. According to the guides, you can observe three types of toucans, different species of parrots such as the famous yellow-eared parrot, and spot large eagles.
Hotels in toche
As for lodging, in Toche you can camp in the camping areas of Tolima farms. Some of them, such as the El Secreto farm, have restaurant service, hot springs, access to the river, and livestock. Also in the town of Cajamarca you can find hotel accommodation.
Thanks, we just want you to save time and money. In return, support us by sharing this guide with your networks
It costs you nothing but you help us a lot!