Submerged Relic – Rosary church.

A decent monsoon is considered a harbinger of good times for farmers. But monsoon, this time has been ravaging across the length and breadth of India and the worst affected state till now seems to be Kerala, in southern India. But monsoon drives are most enjoyable. As one travels in the rains on neat and cleanly washed roads, one breezes across the lush green paddy fields by the highways. The distant green mountains and the grey skies add to the beauty of the land making the drive more pleasurable, of course leaving out the potholes one encounters en route. The gleaming sunrays between the dark clouds give a ray of hope to the photographer to capture the moments.

Just a year and a half back, when we, a bunch of friends drove towards Hassan, one of the interesting places we had visited was the Shettihalli Rosary Church’ – of which I have posted an album. A beautiful relic, this church is worth visiting even during monsoon for an entirely different perspective, I had thought then.

Located roughly around 220 Kms from Bangalore, one can reach Shettihalli where the mentioned church can be seen, after driving towards Hassan. Built by the French missionaries in 1860, it was abandoned when the Hemavathi reservoir and dam was constructed in 1960. With a day at our disposal and news that the church was almost completely submerged in the waters of the reservoir after a heavy downpour, Hubby and I drove towards Hassan to take a look.

Our best bet to get the view of this submerged beauty was from the road and the bridge upon the reservoir. A very pleasant day with looming clouds and the pitter-patter rains, cool breeze rising from below the bridge, reservoir water with different shades splashing all over the walls of the ruined church and a few photographers and passers-by was the scene we saw.

Panoramic view from the bridge – a small black speck in the water on the right-hand side of the bridge, is the submerged church

The view from the bridge wasn’t very clear. The church seemed to be completely submerged and the continuous showers of rain obstructed the view further. We wanted to explore the option of driving towards the fields closer to the church and try our luck in getting a decent view of the church. Lucky that we could walk a bit closer and the visuals were much interesting.

Closer view of the church by walking in the fields

The reservoir was filled up to the brim and the crumbling church still stood tall stretching it’s neck out and arms spread, trying to stay afloat. The agricultural fields were ploughed and sown. The water in the reservoir danced and bounced on the edges of the fields cutting off the access to the church. It drizzled almost all the time that we spent in the vicinity of the church. I stood there and watched in disbelief, was it the same place and same church that I had walked all over and clicked pictures?

A peaceful place with only the gurgling sounds of the water, a relic trying to keep afloat and overcast sky, time for a video.

Enjoy a time-lapse video shot during the March 2017 visit. We had walked all over the land and explored the place.

We spent around an hour on this route stopping by and clicking some pictures and soaking in the cool breeze. The church in the waters beckoned to be pulled out of the water and placed in a warm place, or so it seemed! A little time & the water will be gone and you will be out in the sunshine gleaming with happiness, I thought as we left the place.