Champwat is believed to the place where the Kurmavtar (the turtle incarnation of Lord Vishnu) took place.

Champawat was formerly the capital of the Chand dynasty rulers. The Baleshwar Temple built by the Chand rulers in 16th century is an excellent monument with marvelous stone carving works.The present living king of former Kumaon state is Raja Mahendra Chand of Lamakhet, he is married to Rani Gita Chand of Rina and has three children (Rajkumari Aakanksha Chand, Rajkumari Mallika Chand, Rajkumar Aryan Chand)
Champawat was home to the Champawat Tiger.
Champawat is famous for Baleshwar Temple, an ancient temple dedicated to Shiva, situated within city of Champawat in Uttarakhand.Baleshwar temples at Champawat has been declared an Indian National Heritage Monument and has been looked after by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) since 1952.