Khoiyachora Waterfall

Khoiyachora is a sequence of seven main cascades, with many smaller steps and pools, on a stream coming down the hills at Mirsharai north of Chittagong, and the visit is a walk rather than a viewpoint: from the road the path crosses paddy and then follows the streambed uphill through forest, scrambling over rock and wading in places, with each fall reached in turn and the higher ones requiring more effort. The whole chain takes several hours to work up and back. Flow depends entirely on rain, so the falls are strong through and just after the monsoon and reduce to little in the dry season, which reverses the usual advice about when to visit Bangladesh. Local guides are available at the trailhead and are worth taking.

History

The waterfall is believed to have flowed for about 50 years, long hidden in the trackless hills, and some think it formed through a shift in the hill streams around then. In 2010 the government made it part of the Baraiyadhala National Park, declaring 293.61 hectares of the Kunda Hat block, and an eco-tourism project begun in 2017 by the Chittagong forest department aims to conserve it (Wikipedia, Khoiyachora Waterfall).

Highlights

• Seven main cascades in sequence - the chain worked up the streambed.
• Pools between the falls - the basins used for swimming.
• A streambed walking route - scrambling and wading rather than a path.
• Monsoon flow - the falls at their strongest in the wet season.

When to go

July to October, during and just after the monsoon, when there is water; the dry season leaves very little. A day. Take a guide, wear shoes you can wet, and expect to get soaked.

Good to know

The route is genuinely rough with slippery rock, wading and scrambling, and injuries happen. Flash flooding is a real risk in heavy rain. There are no facilities. The best season is the monsoon, which is otherwise the worst time to travel in Bangladesh.

Nearby

Mirsharai is on the highway; Chattogram lies south.

Key facts