Bjni Fortress

Bjni Fortress is a medieval Armenian fortress built on a mesa that splits the village of Bjni into two unequal halves — one stretching west and curving south, the other, smaller, lying east. The ridge itself does the dividing.

You can only see the walls from the western side of the village. Reaching them means finding a dirt road that branches off past a cluster of houses and climbs the hillside. It's not a place you find by accident. The fortress stands 1,504 meters above sea level.

There's no ticket booth and no signage. What's left is stone on a ridge, above a village that grew up in its shadow.

Bjni is in Kotayk region, near Charentsavan, roughly 33 kilometers northeast of Yerevan as the crow flies.

The dirt road up to the walls will be harder going after rain or snow, so a dry-season visit makes the climb simpler.