Sau reservoir full of visitors after water capacity increase

Catalonia's most famous reservoir, Sau reservoir, in the central area of the territory, saw dozens of visitors during the weekend, coinciding with the water capacity increase.

The reservoir is well recognized in photos, as in the middle of the basin there is an abandoned 11th-century sunken church that is no longer accessible by foot after continuous rain in March.

Due to the drought registered during the last months, the reservoir fell to one of its lowest capacity levels in history. However, it now stands at 68% of its capacity.

"It is impressive how the reservoir has completely changed," Jordi Bonich, a neighbor from Barcelona who visited Sau when it was empty and returned on Sunday to observe the change. "I, personally, prefer to see it at full capacity as water is life," he added.

Most of these visitors just come to see and take photos of the sunken church of the drowned town of Sant Romà. Many have named this bell tower the 'water thermometer of Catalonia.'

Meritxell Font is the head of the information bureau at Sau reservoir. "After so long, people like seeing the reservoir increase its capacity," she told the Catalan News Agency (ACN). Authorities have seen a rise in visitors, especially after Catalan internal basins surpassed 60% of their capacity last week.

Font told ACN that people are coming to compare the reservoir right now to when it was emptier, and all of them are "very happy" to see it at this capacity level.

Amadeu Creus, traveling from Roda de Ter with his wife and 11-year-old Pol, also came "a while back to see the dry reservoir, and we are now back as we believe it is important for our son to see the evidence and can understand climate change."

Vilanova de Sau, the neighboring town, is now ready to welcome more visitors after the historic drought. However, mayor Jaume Orra believes people would come more often when it was dry "just for curiosity, but I prefer to see it full."