The
town of Chamba, the district headquarter of Chamba
district is situated in the western Himalayas
between north latitudes 32°10' and 33°13'
and east longitudes 75°45' and 77°33'.
The town stands on a plateau on the right bank
of the Ravi river valley between Dhauladhar and
Zanskar ranges south of the inner Himalayas. This
town was founded by Raja Sahil Varman when he
conquered the lower Rani valley from the petty
chiefs called Ranas and Thakurs in the beginning
of 10th Century. It seems the original name of
the town was Champa as mentioned in Kalhan's Rajtarangani.
In the bansauli or genealogical rolls of the Chamba
Rajas a reference occurs of place which was adorned
with highly fragrant Champaka trees and guarded
by Goddess Champavati or more popularly known
as Chameshni. The temple was built by Sahil Varman
in the honour of his daughter Champavati who is
worshipped as a goddess in Chamba. Champavati
temple became the family temple of the ruling
family.
General
information
Area:
6528 sq. km
Population
4.60 lakh
Season:
The best tourist season to visit Chamba is round
the year. Adventure tourists may like to undertake
winter trekking from November to March when the
higher reaches of the district are snow clad and
access to most of the villages is on foot.
Climate:
The climate of Chamba in general is tempreate
with well defined seasons. However, there may
be variations because of micro-climatic systems
depending upon altitude and mountain aspect. The
winters last from December to February. March
and April generally remain cool and dry but snowfall
does occur at higher elevations during these months.
The temperature begins to rise rapidly from the
middle of April till last week of June or first
week of July when monsoon breaks-in. Monsoon continues
till the end of August or mid September. During
the monsoon, the weather remains misty, humid
and cloudy. October and November are comparatively
dry but cold. The maximum temperature in Chamba
town in summers is 38°C and the minimum in
winter is 0°C.
Approach:
Chamba is approximately 52 kms from Dalhousie.
The distance is reduced by 6 kms. via Upper Barkota
and Khajjiar road. Bus and taxi service is available
from Chamba to Pathankot, Delhi, Dharamsala, Shimla,
Chandigarh, Jammu and most of the Punjab cities
along the national highway.
