Chail, Himachal Pradesh

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Chail is a place in Himachal Pradesh, India.

1 General
2 About the place
3 Attractions
4 Access
5 References

[edit] General

Location- Himachal Pradesh.
Altitude- 2,250 m.
Attractions- Cricket Ground, Chail Wildlife Sanctuary, Sadhupul.
Best Time to visit the place- May-July and September-November.

[edit] About the place

Chail (former summer capital of Patiala) is 43 km from Shimla. The place is well known for the cricket ground and a polo ground which is there at an altitude of 2,250 m. The ground has the world's highest cricket pitch.
Chail is also considered as the hiker's paradise. The area is away from the bustling life of the state capital Shimla.

In 1891, Maharaja Bhupinder Singh of Patiala incurred the rage of Lord Kitchener. It led to the restriction of his entry into the summer capital, Shimla. This incensed the Maharaja and he vowed to build a new summer capital for himself. So he rebuilt the place (Chail) as per his requirements.

The place is surrounded by the forests of chir pine and gigantic deodars.
Shimla and Kasauli can also be viewed at night from here by overlooking Satluj river.

[edit] Attractions

Chail Sanctuary- The sanctuary was notified on 21 March 1976 near the town in district Shimla and covers an area of about 10,854.36 hectares.
Cricket Ground- Surrounded by thick forests of deodar, a well maintained Chail Cricket ground is the highest cricket ground in the world. It was built in 1893. This ground located at an altitude of 2,144 m is also used as polo ground.^[1]
Chail Military School It has beautiful buildings and mostly resides on the ancient buildings made by Maharaja of patiala.

Chail Palace - Built in 1891, the Maharaja's palace is set in approximately 75 acres and has a truly regal setting with spectacular views. A wide variety of cottages, suites and rooms with different tariffs can accommodate every visitor who wish to savor this majestic hill station.

The suites, rooms and cottages are sumptuously furnished with ornate and antique furniture and wall to wall carpeting with fire place. You will be treated as Prince over there.

SIDH BABA KA MANDIR (1.5 km) - Maharaja Bhupinder Singh originally began building his palace at this site. It is said that a Sidh - saintly person - appeared before the Maharaja in dream and declared that this was the place where he had this temple built.

WILDLIFE SANCTUARY (3 km) - The Chail sanctuary has 'ghoral', 'kakkar', 'sambhar', 'red jungle fowl' and 'khalij' and 'cheer' pheasants. Machan like sighting posts have been built at Khuruin.

ADVENTURE AND FISHING - A dozen or so trek routes lead out of Chail. Trails lead up to the Choor Peak and to Shimla. There is fishing on Giri river at Gaura, 29 km away.

[edit] Access

Chail is connected by road. From Shimla via Kufri the distance is 45 km and via Kandaghat is 61 km. Kalka is 86 km away. Regular buses for Chail leave from Shimla, Chandigarh and Delhi. The closest airports are at Chandigarh (120 km) and Shimla (63 km).