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Rudder Cay Beach

Location: Southern Exumas
Lat / Lon: N 23° 52.457' / W 076° 14.492'
Depth: 7'-9'
Tide: 2.5'-3.0'
Description:
The beach anchorage is at the mouth of a cove that is defined by a headland on the south side. On the NE end of the cove there is a beautiful sandy beach that is protected by a stand of royal palms, which are quite unusual amidst the mangrove and palmettos that are more common in this part of the Bahamas.
The beach is private but to date there has not been an issue for those wishing to stretch their legs. It would be bad form however to stray from the beach as there are houses on the island. There is adequate protection from prevailing easterlies, however it is open to the south and west. The holding is excellent.
The area is popular and it is not uncommon the find 4-5 vessels anchored at any given time.

4.00

(3)

4.00 out of 5 stars

Holding:

3.67

Good holding in sand

Wind Protection:

4.00

N-SE

Current Flow:

3.33

Wake Protection:

3.67

Scenic Beauty:

4.67

Ease of Shopping:

1.00

Shore Access:

3.33

Private Beach nearby

Pet Friendly:

3.67

Private beach nearby

Cell Service:

2.67

Fair Coverage

WiFi:

1.00

Review for Rudder Cay Beach

Reviewed by: Jason Spitz, Breathe, on Mar 12, 2024
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 40'
Draft: 4.0'

Overall Rating:

4

Holding:

4

Wind Protection:

4

Current Flow:

2

Wake Protection:

3

Scenic Beauty:

4

Ease of Shopping:

1

Shore Access:

3

Pet Friendly:

4

Cell Service:

2

We returned to Rudder Cut Cay just shy of 1 year from our last visit. We came in to 22 boats, the most we've seen by far. We had a turning of winds with some westerly. Between the lack of protection west and the current that flows more North to South, most of the boats in the anchorage were beam to the wind. Uncomfortable to say the least. 23 boats became 7 boats in the morning, but was back to over a dozen by nightfall. As the winds turned N-NE-E, the anchorage becomes more pleasant. Note that multiple tour boats come through to swim with the turtles, see the cave, the Piano Player and David Copperfield's Musha Cay. So be prepared for a few wakes from speedboats with tourists. We shot some video of the snorkel spots. You can view the video here https://fb.watch/qMpYmOMpet/?

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Review for Rudder Cay Beach

Reviewed by: Jason Spitz, Breathe, on Mar 25, 2023
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 40'
Draft: 4.0'

Overall Rating:

4

Holding:

4

Wind Protection:

4

Current Flow:

4

Wake Protection:

4

Scenic Beauty:

5

Ease of Shopping:

1

Shore Access:

4

Pet Friendly:

4

Cell Service:

3

WiFi:

1

Rudder cut is beginning to become a popular anchorage And was quite busy this year with boats spilling well into the deeper recommended cut. Boats transiting the cut should be aware of anchored boats in the "channel". The cove itself quickly shallows to less than 4ft MLW, so boats should use caution.

There is very good protection from N to ESE winds. As winds turn SE/SSE, there is some side swell that may present itself. The cay itself is private, but there is a nice beach in the eastern corner.

There is good snorkeling at the cave in the SE corner and David Copperfields Piano and the Mermaid Statue is close by.

Here's some photos from the cave/reef in the anchorage:
https://www.facebook.com/100063618668322/posts/pfbid02e2VetgT5bMyysizZpcZCXKCbCiR5n7eVFCAhLFwEg64gk7mdgYdKkgechoXB9XTl/

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Review for Rudder Cay Beach

Reviewed by: Alex Tarlecky on Mar 20, 2022
Vessel Type: Sail
LOA: 42'
Draft: 4.0'

Overall Rating:

4

Holding:

3

Wind Protection:

4

Current Flow:

4

Wake Protection:

4

Scenic Beauty:

5

Ease of Shopping:

1

Shore Access:

3

Pet Friendly:

3

Cell Service:

3

WiFi:

1

Used navionics sonar charts to navigate in through the north entrance and when leaving out through the south channel. Very shallow but instead of entering on the high tide, try entering on the mid to lowering tide because the tide swing here is probably 4 feet or so and you do not want to mistakenly anchor in a shallow spot - you will end up on the sand. We anchored slightly east of the waterway guide mark and at low tide had maybe 6" under the keel. We had a calm night but when the current is running out in the channel it sends little swell-lets into the anchorage... maybe 6 inches or so. Not enough to cause us to bump bottom but noticeable. There appears to be a fairly thin layer of sand over hard pan so while the mantus got some bite I wouldn't call it "sunk in". Snorkeling was good with Rays, Turtles, Fish, some coral. Although the island is privately held we saw no one around (no dogs as far as I could tell) and lots of people were using the beaches. Easy access to the Piano statue. There are a few paths around the island that a long long time ago were paved. Nice palm trees in a small section, unkempt. We had an almost full moon that only added to the charm. However, IMO, no boat with a draft of over 4 feet should attempt to anchor here. Internet was iffy...

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