Simpson Bay Lagoon

About

Simpson Bay Lagoon (also spelt Simson Bay Lagoon, or referred to simply as the Great Pond) is one of the largest inland lagoons in the West Indies of the Caribbean. It is located on the island of Saint Martin. The border between the French and Dutch halves of the island runs across the centre of the lagoon. There are two small islands that lie in the lagoon: the larger, Grand Ilet (also known as Explorer's Island) to the north, is within the French region of Saint-Martin; the smaller, Little Key, to the south, is on the Dutch Sint Maarten side. Historically it was not a lagoon, but a lake. A hurricane in 1819 breached the natural isthmus at Pelican, isolating the Simpson Bay fishing community for a century. Halfway through the 20th century, an artificial canal at the current Simpson Bay Lagoon Bridge replaced the initial natural waterway.

The lagoon is connected to the Caribbean Sea via a small channel in the north-west which flows into Baie Nettlé in Saint-Martin and another small channel in the south-east which flows into Simpson Bay in Sint Maarten. Sint Maarten's airport, Princess Juliana International Airport lies close to the lagoon's southern shore.