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178-acre Rendezvous Bay fishing map with NOAA BlueTopo survey contours (99.94% measured, 99.94% assessed), source-traceable coastal structure, regional fish-survey occurrence, sourced forage timing and verified public access. The water tops out around 60 ft. The depth chart is built from real agency bathymetry referenced to NAVD88; directly measured coverage remains distinguished from source interpolation. The channels, holes and drop-offs come from the source data, not a distance-from-shore model. What follows comes from the same scoring engine that paints the spots above.
Rendezvous Bay maps at 178 acres behind 2.6 miles of shoreline, broken up by an island. A shoreline index of 1.4 says round and simple: fish relate to depth changes here, not shoreline features. Roughly 6% of the water is 15 ft or less, the band where the food chain lives. Call it 0.9 mi long by 0.5 mi wide at the broadest reach. Its nearest charted neighbour, Monte Bay, is 0 mi to the north.
Spring puts atlantic tarpon in skinny water — 3 to 25 ft is the zone. As the season builds they drop to 4 to 35 ft, wintering in 5 to 35 ft. Spring atlantic tarpon concentrate at NOAA charted underwater rock, a good-rated rock pile around 10 ft. Warm-month bites cluster around early morning and the evening. A heavy paddletail or a swimbait in pass current covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 25 ft | dawn & dusk | NOAA charted underwater rock (10 ft) | 4-6 inch paddletail, Suspending baitfish plug |
| Summer | 4 to 35 ft | dawn & dusk | NOAA charted underwater rock (10 ft) | Heavy paddletail, Swimbait in pass current |
| Fall | 3 to 30 ft | dawn & dusk | NOAA charted underwater rock (10 ft) | Mullet-profile swimbait, Surface plug |
| Winter | 5 to 35 ft | dusk | NOAA charted underwater rock (10 ft) | Slow-rolled paddletail, Suspending plug |
When the water first warms, jack crevalle slide up into 2 to 25 ft. By summer they slide out to 3 to 35 ft, and by winter most fish are in 5 to 35 ft. If you only fish one area, make it NOAA charted rock bottom: a hard bottom around 2 ft that scores prime in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. Keep a pencil popper or a casting spoon rigged through the warm months.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 25 ft | dawn & dusk | NOAA charted rock bottom (2 ft) | Surface popper, Metal jig |
| Summer | 3 to 35 ft | dawn & dusk | NOAA charted rock bottom (2 ft) | Pencil popper, Casting spoon |
| Fall | 2 to 30 ft | dawn & midday | NOAA charted rock bottom (2 ft) | Topwater walker, Metal jig |
| Winter | 5 to 35 ft | dusk | NOAA charted underwater rock (10 ft) | Compact metal jig, Slow-rolled paddletail |
Early season yellowtail snapper use the shallows, holding in 8 to 60 ft. Even in summer they hold at 9 to 60 ft; winter keeps them in 9 to 60 ft. Put NOAA charted rock bottom first on the milk run — a hard bottom near 2 ft that grades prime for spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. Tie on a micro jig or a small paddletail and you're in the game.
Depth note: when a documented seasonal range extends below this chart, the table shows the deepest mapped working water, not a verified holding depth.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 8 to 60 ft | dawn & dusk | NOAA charted rock bottom (2 ft) | Small bucktail, Light vertical jig |
| Summer | 9 to 60 ft chart-limited; documented 10 to 70 ft | dawn & dusk | NOAA charted rock bottom (2 ft) | Micro jig, Small paddletail |
| Fall | 9 to 60 ft chart-limited; documented 10 to 70 ft | dawn & dusk | NOAA charted rock bottom (2 ft) | Small vertical jig, Baitfish streamer |
| Winter | 9 to 60 ft chart-limited; documented 12 to 80 ft | dusk | NOAA charted rock bottom (2 ft) | Small jig worked deep, Bucktail |
In spring, mutton snapper run shallow here, mostly 7 to 60 ft. Summer keeps them at 8 to 60 ft, and they winter in 10 to 60 ft. Spring mutton snapper concentrate at NOAA charted rock bottom, a prime-rated hard bottom around 2 ft. Fish it in early morning and the evening and you'll meet the bite. You won't need more than a heavy bucktail or a vertical jig most summer days.
Depth note: when a documented seasonal range extends below this chart, the table shows the deepest mapped working water, not a verified holding depth.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 7 to 60 ft chart-limited; documented 8 to 65 ft | dawn & dusk | NOAA charted rock bottom (2 ft) | Bucktail near bottom, Paddletail |
| Summer | 8 to 60 ft chart-limited; documented 10 to 80 ft | dawn & dusk | NOAA charted rock bottom (2 ft) | Heavy bucktail, Vertical jig |
| Fall | 8 to 60 ft chart-limited; documented 10 to 75 ft | dawn & dusk | NOAA charted rock bottom (2 ft) | Bucktail + strip, Slow vertical jig |
| Winter | 10 to 60 ft chart-limited; documented 15 to 90 ft | dusk | NOAA charted rock bottom (2 ft) | Slow jig, Bottom bucktail |
Start shallow in spring: great barracuda sit in 2 to 45 ft that time of year. Warm water sends them out to 3 to 55 ft; cold water stacks them in 5 to 60 ft. Top water on the chart: NOAA charted rock bottom, a hard bottom in the 2 ft range, prime in winter. Fish it in early morning and the evening and you'll meet the bite. Throw a fast swimbait or a spoon until the fish tell you otherwise.
Depth note: when a documented seasonal range extends below this chart, the table shows the deepest mapped working water, not a verified holding depth.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 45 ft | dawn & midday | NOAA charted rock bottom (2 ft) | Fast tube lure, Long minnow plug |
| Summer | 3 to 55 ft | dawn & dusk | NOAA charted rock bottom (2 ft) | Fast swimbait, Spoon |
| Fall | 3 to 55 ft | dawn & midday | NOAA charted rock bottom (2 ft) | Mullet-profile plug, Tube lure |
| Winter | 5 to 60 ft chart-limited; documented 5 to 65 ft | midday & dusk | NOAA charted rock bottom (2 ft) | Long minnow plug, Fast jig |
Spring puts gray snapper (mangrove snapper) in skinny water — 3 to 22 ft is the zone. Warm water sends them out to 4 to 30 ft; cold water stacks them in 8 to 45 ft. NOAA charted underwater rock is the standout, a rock pile at roughly 10 ft, rated prime for summer gray snapper (mangrove snapper). Plan around early morning and the evening in the warm months. A small bucktail or a paddletail covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 22 ft | dawn & dusk | NOAA charted underwater rock (10 ft) | Small paddletail, Jighead + shrimp imitation |
| Summer | 4 to 30 ft | dawn & dusk | NOAA charted underwater rock (10 ft) | Small bucktail, Paddletail |
| Fall | 5 to 35 ft | dawn & dusk | NOAA charted underwater rock (10 ft) | Small vertical jig, Jighead + paddletail |
| Winter | 8 to 45 ft | midday | NOAA charted underwater rock (10 ft) | Small jig worked slowly |
9 pieces of structure are mapped here — NOAA BlueTopo measured inlet-channel depth, around 60 ft, is the deepest of them.
Access data: National Park Service — Virgin Islands National Park Superintendent's Compendium and Cruz Bay Visitor Center POI. Confirm conditions and fees locally before you launch.
Season dates, license requirements, and size and bag limits for U.S. Virgin Islands waters are set by the National Park Service and USVI DPNR (St. John park fishing) — and special regulations can apply to Rendezvous Bay specifically, so confirm the current rules before you fish.
Check the official U.S. Virgin Islands fishing regulations →
Rendezvous Bay is about 60 ft (18 m) deep at its deepest point. The depth chart is built from real agency bathymetry referenced to NAVD88; directly measured coverage remains distinguished from source interpolation. The contours reflect measured and quality-assessed source depths.
Anglers target atlantic tarpon, jack crevalle, yellowtail snapper, mutton snapper, great barracuda, gray snapper (mangrove snapper) on Rendezvous Bay.
NOAA charted rock bottom is the top-rated area: a hard bottom in about 2 ft of water that rates prime for mutton snapper in spring. Every other rated spot, per species and season, is on the map above.
For atlantic tarpon, the summer bite is best in early morning and the evening. Each species page section below lists the seasonal windows, and the map shows a live NOW badge when you're inside one.
Fishing on Rendezvous Bay is regulated by the National Park Service and USVI DPNR (St. John park fishing). Check the official U.S. Virgin Islands regulations for current license requirements, season dates, and size and bag limits — special regulations can apply to this specific water.
Monte Bay 0 mi · Hart Bay 0 mi · Fish Bay 1 mi · Devers Bay 1 mi · Great Cruz Bay 1 mi · Turner Bay 2 mi · Genti Bay 2 mi · Reef Bay 2 mi · Frank Bay 2 mi · Caneel Bay 2 mi · Hawksnest Bay 2 mi · Denis Bay 3 mi
See how Rendezvous Bay stacks up: best gray snapper (mangrove snapper) lakes in U.S. Virgin Islands · best atlantic tarpon lakes in U.S. Virgin Islands · best jack crevalle lakes in U.S. Virgin Islands · best yellowtail snapper lakes in U.S. Virgin Islands
Browse all U.S. Virgin Islands fishing maps. See every water on DepthScout. Bathymetry credit: NOAA BlueTopo (NAVD88; 100% measured, 0% source-interpolated). How we build these maps. Fish here with a sonar unit that logs? Send us your depth data and we'll improve this chart, credited to you. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.