Rudkhan Castle ( also Rood-khan Castle) is a medieval castle made of brick and stone, located in 25 km southwest of Fuman, a city in Gilan province.

We camped at night in Fuman so we can have the early walk to the castle. It rained a little bit during the night, making the sky clear and fusing a good scent in the air. We began walking in the of the rise of the light.

The path was paved in the middle of the forest and it was encircled by trees and plants, while a river was along the way and the songs of the birds accompanying you. Walking was a bit challenging because of the rocky passageways and the thousand stairs you had to overcome to reach the fortress. But it all made the path itself an attraction not just a driveway to the destination. As it is said, the castle was built during the Sasanian era (224-651), and later restored in the time of the Seljuqs dynasty by followers of the Ismā’īlī sect. In fact, because of the great strategic position, it has been home to many monarchs and governors since its time of construction, each trying to restore and fortify it for their own use. I can see why it stands erect and healthy.

Reaching to the top, what mesmerized me was how the liveliness and greenness of nature had penetrated into the lifeless and solemn architecture of the gray stone castle. Rudkhan is an epitome of a human product in war with nature, a cultural monument so entangled with life around it, that it has been unified with it at the same time that it tries to survive it. This is the most beautiful index of time that can happen: the war and peace of culture and nature.