Natural Pool in St Maarten

While visiting St Maarten this summer, a friend who is a native of the island took me on a hike seriously off the beaten path.  The hike is along a cliff, and looks down on waves crashing over jagged rocks-- it's ruggedly beautiful, but starkly not ideal for swimming.  If you're going without a local, this is a short but tricky trek.  Be careful, but enjoy the view.

We started by parking near a basketball court on the Dutch side of the island.  We walked through the court and a neighborhood dog trotted up to us.  This dog literally accompanied for the hike along the cliff, our swim in the pool, and the hike back.  Once you're on the other side of the court, you'll come across a faint path.  Take it.

Keep walking, and don't be deterred by the abandoned garbage dump that you'll pass.  It's an eye sore, but the destination compensates for it.  It's roughly halfway to the pool.


You'll catch a glimpse of your destination before you reach it.  The waves in this area are high, but a ring of big rocks breaks them outside of this pool.  The pool is perpetually calm and surges only slightly when the waves seep in around the rocks.  The water is clear enough to see bright and colorful little fish that live in the rock crevices.  Bring a mask for a better look.  Be careful scaling the rocks down to the pool, and look out for sea urchins while you're swimming.  Enjoy the clear water while you cool off from the hike.