Porte d'Enfer

The Porte d'Enfer is a long narrow inlet cut into the limestone of Grande-Terre's northeastern coast, so enclosed that the water inside it is flat and shallow while the Atlantic breaks hard on the rocks at its mouth a few hundred metres away. The contrast is the point: families swim in the lagoon while the sea outside is unswimmable. A clifftop path runs north from it towards the Trou de Madame Coco sinkhole.

Highlights

• The enclosed lagoon - flat shallow water inside a narrow cut in the cliffs.
• The Atlantic mouth - the sea breaking hard at the outer end.
• The clifftop path - the walk north along the limestone coast.
• The Trou de Madame Coco - the sinkhole along the cliff path.

When to go

December to April is the driest. Weekends bring local families to the lagoon. Swell can push into the inlet in winter.

Things to know

Swimming beyond the lagoon mouth is extremely dangerous. The clifftop path is unfenced above the sea. There is no shade and few facilities.

Nearby

Pointe de la Grande Vigie is west, and Anse-Bertrand is south.

Key facts