You can see the town between the beach and salt pond
Over 400 years ago the Dutch settled on the south side of St Martin in order to harvest salt from the large salt pond across from a narrow strip of land in Great Bay. This strip of land became the capital, Philipsburg, and I wrote about it a few days ago.
Today I want to talk about the Great Salt Pond, which is not actively being used to produce salt anymore, but instead is a great place to see many tropical birds. When I visited I was able to see several pelicans diving for fish, herons flying about, and ducks on the water. Sadly there is no viewing platform that I could find, but you are able to see quite a bit from the dirt road on the edge of the pond.
Finding the pond could not be easier. Just walk perpendicular from the beach 5-6 blocks and you will run right into it. Even from the cruise ships it is less than a 30 minute walk.
