Riwai Living Root Bridge (Single-Decker, 200+ Years).
Crowds default to the Nongriat double-decker because it's more photographed; Riwai is the cheaper, faster, less-Instagrammed alternative. Most Mawlynnong day-trips stop here, but the 15-minute access is short enough that visitors miss the patient maintenance work — fresh roots being trained over the existing bridge to extend its life.WHY NOBODY KNOWS
A 200-year-old Ficus elastica root-bridge ~1 km on foot from Mawlynnong's village square, in the neighbouring hamlet of Riwai. War-Khasi families train the aerial roots across a stream for two generations before the bridge becomes structurally sound. Single-tier (unlike the more famous double-decker at Nongriat 70 km south), it's the easiest functional living-root span to see in Meghalaya — paved footpath, 15-minute downhill walk, no permit required. Best at 11 AM-2 PM when the gorge canopy is fully lit and the moss on the roots glows.
