Jakar Dzong and Tamzhing's chain mail

Jakar Dzong stands on a ridge above Jakar town, overlooking the Chhoekhor valley. Its name is usually translated 'castle of the white bird', after a legend that a white bird settled on the ridge as a sign of where to build. Today it houses the district administration and a community of monks. The walls are long and the central tower tall; inside, the courtyards are calm in the afternoon. A short walk up from town gives a view of the valley at sunset.

Across the river, Tamzhing Monastery was founded in 1501 by Pema Lingpa, Bumthang's great treasure-revealer and the ancestor of the royal family. It is an important Nyingma monastery and keeps some of the oldest wall paintings in Bhutan, darkened by centuries of butter-lamp smoke. A coat of chain mail weighing many kilos is said to have been made by Pema Lingpa himself. Pilgrims carry it three times around the inner sanctum to cleanse their sins; visitors may try.

Wear long sleeves and trousers, remove caps and shoes inside and do not photograph the shrines. Entry at each site is about Nu 500, indicative 2026. Opening hours depend on the monks' routine and on administrative work at the dzong, so let your guide confirm. Tamzhing is a 20-minute walk across a footbridge from Kurjey Lhakhang, so you can link all three sites on foot.