Courtesy of WOWSA, Huntington Beach, California.

Breathe to one side and you might be able to see the beautiful Austrian side of Lago di Resia; breathe to the other side and you may be able to see the the majestic Ortler Glacier in Italy.

And when the water levels are high, you might be able to sight off the 14th century church bell tower or use it as a turn buoy.

Beginning in 1940, Italian electric company Montecatini built a dam to unify the area’s two lakes: Reschensee and Mittersee.

163 homes were submerged and in Graun, the 14th-century church bell tower is the only reminder that the village existed.

Copyright © 2014 by World Open Water Swimming Association