Great Bitter Lake

Lake on Suez Canal between Ismailiya (N) and Suez (S); Little Bitter Lake lies SE.

The Great Bitter Lake (Arabic: البحيرة المرة الكبرى; transliterated: al-Buhayrah al-Murra al-Kubra) is a salt water lake between the north and south part of the Suez Canal. Together, the Bitter Lakes have a surface area of about 250 km². To the north, the canal also runs through Lake Manzala and Lake Timsah.

As the canal has no locks, sea water flows freely into the lake from the Mediterranean and the Red Sea, replacing water lost to evaporation. The lake acts as a buffer for the canal, reducing the effect of tidal currents.

During the Six-Day War in 1967, the canal was closed, leaving 14 ships trapped in the lake until 1975.