Ombak tidur…the waves have gone to sleep. We’re up here in Mentawais awaiting an inbound swell. Usually, in May, we cop a heap of big surf that is fed by the storms down below Western Australia in The Roaring 40s. The swell charts show promise and the boys on the boat are getting’ twitchy. We’ve had […]

Hi. I’m in Indonesia for my annual surf-infused junket and loving it! We’re surfing the dregs of that swell that hit Bali for the WSL finals, and I won’t lie, it’s now small. When it’s small you can hit the exposed beaches which seem to always have a head high wave…and they’re so hollow. Not […]

She’s tamed ‘Chopes, Jaws and Nazare…now she’s in Bondi to dominate our straight-handing one footers. Can she do it? Big Wave Legend Keala Kennelly (KK) surprised the One Wave Crew and came out for a paddle this morning. No tow, no vest…she dominated our Fluro Friday line up. Water is amazing, warm and 21. Weather is incredible, but a […]

That sensational run of south swell has finally come to an end. Waves are now limping in around uno to due piede! Nothing was breaking well, shallow straight banks still plague Bondi beach. After last night’s rain, we’ve got a partly cloudy day with a top of 23. The swell will remain small for a […]

If you were a surf tourist and rocked into Sydney this week you’d think you’ve reached Utopia. You’d think…wow, this joint has 4ft waves all day long, with little wind and warm water/weather even in Autumn. Conditions are not always this good. It’s quite an exceptional run… The banks aren’t great though. I’m sure if […]

At first glance, it looks like Bondi is pumping. When you watch the sets unfold you’ll realise it’s not really surfable due to extreme straightness. I swam out the back this morning amongst four footers…sticking my head in and out of hollow spaces, in search of some gold curvy moments. It was nice and warm […]

I’m back from my little West Oz sabbatical and straight down the beach to check the surf. We have waves! Heaps! But there’s absolutely no banks. Such a waste. We need a reef. Frustrating! I tried to surf it but you can barely get to your feet before the wave collapses. The conditions are sweet […]

We’ve timed our arrival into Esperance perfectly with Bodhi’s 50-year storm (OK slight exaggeration). It hasn’t stopped raining here today. I can’t complain as we’ve had an incredible run of weather and waves since we landed in Western Australia. So all those Instagram photos you see of Esperance’s iridescent blue water, friendly beach kangaroos and epic […]

Western Australia is a HUGE place. It’s half the size of Europe! W.A. boasts 12,500 kilometres of coastline and due to its sheer size has so much diversity. Every town we’ve visited in our WA jaunt has been unique. Today we’re in Denmark, 4 hours drive from Margaret River. It’s a wild place – literally. […]

Cape Naturaliste to Cape Leeuwin is 132 kilometres of coastline in Western Australia’s South-West that’s littered with surf breaks. Some are well known; others are hidden down long winding, unmarked 4wd tracks. If you know where to go at the right time – scoring waves without crowds isn’t too hard. Recently retired pro surfer Taj Burrow […]

My family and I have arrived in the Margaret River region of Western Australia’s South-west and the surf is lighting up. It’s been pretty big. I grew up in Perth and learnt to surf ‘Down South’. I haven’t been back in years so it brings back a lotta memories. It’s a wild place…so raw. I forgot just […]

Just another day in W.A… Ningaloo Reef is 300 kilometres long and fringes the coast of the Cape Range National Park. You can stay in the park at one of the many campsites (very few hotels), or step it up at the Sal Salis…an eco-retreat with sixteen ‘Glamping’ tents, right on the beach. It’s a […]

Our West Oz tour continues in the North West. The Jinigudera Aboriginal tribe are the traditional landowners of the Ningaloo region. They’ve lived in this region for at least thirty thousand years – probably longer. I can see why, beautiful weather (rains only two days a year)…the ocean is also ultra warm, and the lagoons inside Ningaloo Reef […]

G’day from WA! I’ve traversed the country in search of the famous giant spotted fish – The Whale Shark. Ningaloo is a 300 kilometre stretch of world-heritage listed reef that hugs North-Western corner of Australia. Whale Sharks frequent this area as food is plentiful. Today we swam with them! Around 5 of the big units. Tick. […]

Today the Usana Surfaid Cup is on at Bondi. Collectively we raised $100k for this great cause – how good is that! Our amazing Aquabumps readers, you, raised nearly $15,000 of that (the highest total of all 14 teams). Pat on the back, thank you so much. Greatly appreciate your generous support. The surf isn’t […]

After twenty years of punching out this daily email thing, I felt the template needed a little bit of a shakedown…ya know, some design tweaks to keep it fresh. Go on, have a look around. Same morning shots just stepping it up a little. Scroll to the bottom and you’ll find new features like “This […]

Dang! Fantastic start to the day. A feast of colour above Bondi…wow! After 20 years of getting up early, stalking sunrises…today’s show ranks pretty highly. It always blows me away how short lived it was – seconds really. Surf – not great, limping 1-2 footers with a large crowd out. If winter puts a smile on your […]