Cholesterol appended bispyridinium isophthalamide dichloride (1) has been designed and synthesized. While compound 1 forms a gel in CHCl₃, the cholesterol appended bispyridinium isophthalamide dihexafluorophosphate (1a) analogue that results from 1 on anion exchange does not form a gel in any solvent combination. The chloroform gel of 1 is pH responsive and shows thermally activated ionic conductivity. It serves as a medium for the specific detection of Ag⁺ ions over a series of examined cations. Compound 1a, on the other hand, acts as a selective Cl⁻ ion detector by forming a gel in chloroform in the presence of tetrabutylammonium chloride.