VISTULA LAGOON

German Frisches Haff, Polish Zalew Wislany, Russian Vislinsky Zaliv shallow, marsh-fringed lagoon on the Baltic coast, bisected by the Polish-Russian border and considered part of the Gulf of Gdansk. Covering 330 square miles (855 square km), it is 56 miles (90 km) long, 6 to 15 miles (10 to 19 km) wide, and up to 17 feet (5 m) deep. The Nogat, the eastern distributary of the Vistula River delta, is the principal river entering the lagoon. The long, narrow Vistula Spit protects the lagoon from the main body of the Gulf of Gdansk (northwest); and a narrow, dredged channel offers access to the gulf and the Baltic for the important port of Kaliningrad (Russia). Other ports include Elblag (Poland) and Baltiysk (Russia). The lagoon has important fisheries.