Chehni Kothi in the Tirthan valley
The Chehni Kothi (or Chaini Kothi) is an impressive tower made of stone and wood. It has been named from the village where it lies : Chehni village. Chehni is located in the Jibhi valley near the Tirthan valley.
There is a jeepable road reaching the village but we suggest you to go on foot. It takes about 45 minutes or an hour to reach on foot from the main road depending on your stamina.
You can start walking either from the Shringa Rishi gate or from the villager Bihar. Both starting points are accessible from a link road located between Banjar and Jibhi.
In case you want to go with your car be sure you are comfortable on steep and narrow mountain tracks.
In case you stay in the Tirthan valley you will need to move to Banjar first and then continue towards Jibhi and Jalori pass. It is approx a 45 minutes drive from Gushaini.
A visit to Chehni Kothi is a perfect one day activity if you want to blend walking in the mountains with a cultural experience.
Chehni Kothi trek
Visiting Chehni Kothi involves hiking for about an hour or you can reach by car going through a quite steep track.
On the way you can observe so many aspects of the local lifestyle. What the people grow in their fields ? How do they manage daily in such a rural area ? How do they deal with the divine forces ? All these can be seen on the way to Chehni.
We advise you to do the hike from the village Bihar, the slope will be more gentle and you can see more on the way.
The best way is to be in touch with us. We will arrange a local guide so that (s)he can take you through the best itinerary.
We further recommend you to combine to visit to Chehni with Myagi, a tiny village from where you have a great view of the Great Himalayan National Park. We will take you there by going though a dense forest of Deodar trees.
Trekking to Chehni
Going to Chehni is a great occasion to combine hiking in a beautiful forest and to have a glimpse of the local lifestyle.
Chehni Kothi architecture
Kath-Kuni architecture
The Chehni Kothi is made in respect with the traditional way of making houses.
Since there is no written record of the origin of the Chehni Kothi, everyone would have a different story to say about it.
The question which receives to most diverse answer is when you ask about how old is the tower. We have got people telling it is 1500 years old, other telling it is 500 years old. In fact, the tower being partialy made of wood, we can reasonably say that it is not more than 200 years old.
Whatever the age of the tower, it is a spectacular one ! Having a height of about 30 metres and being build in an earthquake prone area without concrete or steel is quite astonishing.
It is important to notice that the tower has withstood the major earthquake that has taken the life of 10 thousand people in Himachal Pradesh in 1905.
Its architecture is actually exactly the same than all other traditional houses made in this part of the area. Stones are laid between two layers of wood. And the beams of wood are crossing each other at the corners of the tower. Have a look at the traditional house around and you will notice that there are all made in the same way.
The finishing of Chehni Kothi is made of cob (mixture of soil and cowdung). And the whitish colour is simply limestone.
Chehni Kothi altitude
Chehni Kothi is located at an altitude of about 2145 m.
There are two ways to start hiking to Chehni : the Shringa Rishi temple gate and the village Bihar.
The gate is at an altitude of 1830 m and Bihar at around 1950 m. It means that going from the village Bihar is probably a better option if you want to reduce the physical effort.
Chehni Kothi surroundings
Surrounded by Devodar forest, the altitude of the village is perfect for growing apple trees.
Chehni Kothi height
Chehni tower
It rises above the village and offer a stunning view.
The height of Chehni kothi is around 30 m. This might not seem to be very impressive, but it is actually very impressive because the tower is only made with stones and wood, no cement, no nails, no metal or any other modern material.
Some of the villagers say that the tower has lost a few storeys during the 1905 earthquake. In that case the tower might have been of a 40 metres height initially.
Shringa Rishi temple
You must know that the entire Kullu valley which includes the Tirthan valley is also called the valley of the gods.
Almost each village has its own deity and there are plenty of natural places that are home to various gods. They are all recognized and respected by all the villagers of the Kullu valley. These gods are called Devta.
All these Devta have a their own story, and so there are gods who are more important than others.
Shringa Rishi is the most important Devta of the Tirthan and Jibhi valleys.
Shringa Risha stays in his temple located in the village Bagi, near Chehni Kothi. You can easily visit the temple while going to or coming back Chehni Kothi. The priest family living by the temple will be happy to tell you the epic story of Shringa Rishi.
Shringa Rishi temple
You can easily visit the Shringa Rishi temple when visiting Chehni Kothi.
Chehni Kothi video
Chehni Kothi video
Enjoy drone shots of the Chehni Kothi tower !
Jalori pass video
Enjoy drone shots of the Jalori pass !
