Today’s not yesterday. Yesterday was kinda pumping. Today’s still got waves, but it’s got junk on it and I only rate surfing 3/10 – but it’s 10/10 for a morning swim. Reviewing all the beaches from my bike, I barely saw anyone ride a decent wave. Perhaps it’s the 6:00 a.m. low tide making it […]

The swell has kinked around to the east and is coming in hot. Many breaks today would be hosting goodness (Sydney works well in this swell direction with plenty of options). I would like to see more water on it so the ratio of closeouts is healthier. (low tide was around 5:15am) West winds now, […]

I don’t recall a time in my decades of shooting Bondi that so many youngsters are going hard, day in and day out. Not just saying that as a couple of them are mine. A few years ago, I’d struggle to find anyone surfing Bondi that wasn’t on a 100-litre softie going dead straight on […]

We’ve had a good run of weather and waves recently. We were due for a storm, and today’s the day. 25-30 knot gusts of southerly keep temps down and waves crappy. No one surfing; it’s big and rogue – and needs settling down. I’ve added some recent Indo shots to spice up the unphotogenic Bondi […]

Its mind boggling how different Bondi can be day to day. When you say ‘Bondi’ to people, they think of millions of people on the beach – like the postcards. Over the weekend, Bondi filled up with the glorious weather. People everywhere. Queues everywhere. I’m not torkin’ 50,000 on the sand, maybe 7-10,000? Monday 7 […]

After a night of thunderstorms, we’ve arrived at another glorious (cooler) spring day. The winds are still up WSW 10-15 knots, and there’s a new south swell in town (mixed in with some east swell from yesterday). I saw quite a few decent waves in the shoulder-to-head high vicinity. I even witnessed some lil’ tubeys […]

There’s a cool south change arriving tonight after a roasting 32-degree banger. It’s a beautiful down here, in Bondi, right now. This glorious morning had everyone up early for sunrise, enjoying the fruits of warmer weather. We’ve even got a new south swell that feels like a long period set, chugging in Bondi with overhead […]

It’s warming up into a comfortable spring Bondi day. The sunshine is ubiquitous, and the winds are gentle. Waves are breaking at Bondi, facing the swell southern source – drawing the most out of it. You may even find the odd head-high one. The NE wind will freshen, a signature of a warm day. (maximum […]

Today, we’ve got a dead south swell with onshore SE winds. It didn’t look appealing this morning at sunrise. Only a few frothers out, optimistically hunting a clean face on the head-high sets. I rarely saw anyone catch anything worth photographing. If you’ve ever been curious about Kelee Meditation and want to understand more about […]

I’m back in Bondi. It was weird being on the beach without a herd of water buffalo trampling past or no horses riding into the sunset. Nobody was carrying machetes, only mobile phones! ‘Twas a beautiful Bondi morning. The sunshine is on max, whilst the head-high waves looked a little straight. A gentle NW wind […]

Sempurna = perfection Like Sydney, we’ve been struck with a large swell in Indonesia – a late-season spike. Rather than watch my kids try to paddle out in 8-10 foot slabs, we opted for a peaceful mountain day at a spectacular waterfall. It’s like going back in time in Sumba, where the people live in […]

I’ve been to some pretty idyllic places, but our current location ranks highly, Sumba. It’s a raw, semi-primitive island in Indonesia with plenty of waves, dreamy white sandy beaches and unique local culture.  It’s the dry season here, so we’re scoring endless 36-degree clear skies and sublime water temps. There have been waves daily, especially for […]

There are 18,000 islands in Indonesia, and I’m doing my best to see them all. After a few nights on the “Peaceful Hill” (Amankila), we’ve relocated to a much more remote, quieter island called Moyo in Sumbawa, bobbing in the Flores Sea. They call this tented eco-resort the “Peaceful Forest” (or Amanwana). The crystal blue […]

Like most Australians, Bali has been embedded in my vacation DNA since I was young. I fondly remember riding to Ulu’s via scrambler through the dense jungle on a tiny trail, boards underarm before the warungs. Yes, it’s changed so much in the decades I’ve been visiting (even just in the past 5 years) – […]

It’s currently 28 degrees and about to skyrocket to 36. The weather people have now declared an official El Niño year with dry and hot conditions to follow. The beach has been filling up since 5:30 am this morning, and I’m not just talking Bondi – all the beaches around here at mega-activity. The water […]

The warm weather draws everyone to Bondi early. Looking around at 6 a.m. and seeing so much life on the beach at dawn was incredible. Rigs out, selfies firing, sunscreen wafting, ice baths overflowing, training groups sweating and all the dogs of Sydney on show down the prom. Summer’s come early! 34 degrees today. The […]

I have to admit, with the warmer temps forecasted, I escaped the city to chill on quiet country beaches over the weekend. I heard it was crazy busy around here. Bondi had plenty of warmth, sun and waves this morning. Surprisingly, it was shoulder to head high on sets under an offshore regime (NW). Northwest […]

It’s currently 24 degrees and heading to 26 degrees. Bondi is filling up as many call an early mark and hit the beach. It’s going to be a busy sunset! Gentle NE winds are tickling the bay as we still have chest-high waves. Swell will continue to drop, but the temps will continue to rise […]

Today has a similar theme to the rest of the week – smokey and straight. We have so much swell in town; it’s relentless, but there’s just nowhere handling it well around here. I barely saw anyone catch a non-close-out all morning. Uber clean conditions, gentle winds and ubiquitous sunshine. Swell will start to taper […]

It’s bigger today, but debatable if it’s better. I browsed all the beaches in the neighbourhood, and it just seemed like closeouts everywhere. Yeah, it’s well over head high and some double head high sets…plenty of water moving…but little joy, I thought. At sunrise, this was my verdict anyway. The surf community were up early […]

The fireys are madly back burning in preparation for this weekend’s hot weather. Sydney’s choked up with smoke right now. Hopefully, we’ll have a safe summer. There are waves from this south swell – but not many good ones. Expect to find the odd head high set under optimal light offshores (3 knots of west). […]

There’s smoke in the air, reminiscent of the bushfires two years ago. Hazard reduction burns must be happening west of Bondi – hopefully making our summer safe as they forecast a dry one. This weekend is going to be 28 & 30! Yes, hot. There are waves! (head high) But they’re not breaking great. Frustratingly, […]

I clocked five k’s and 45 mins before snappin’ my first shot this morning (rare). That’s not good. That means we’re served up a mundane, vanilla flavour Bondi morning, and there’s not much to shoot. Typically, I’d shoot between 50 and 400 shots in a morning session. Only 10-12 make it to this post. I […]

Today will be the warmest day we’ve had in a long time. 25. As we transition into spring, the sun rises earlier and the days longer. The swell has bent around to the East, meaning south-facing Bondi will be neglected and small. Other east-facing magnets should be attracting the odd head-high wave, but I found […]

Another mighty fine start to a day: sun, waves and light winds. It was very cool (7) at sunrise but rapidly heating to its forecasted maximum of 21 degrees. (tomorrow will be 25!) Unfortunately, like the rest of this week, mornings are a terrible time to surf with the dawn lower tides. These abundant sandbanks […]

The 5:30 am low tide was detrimental to wave quality at sunrise this morning. There’s quite a lot of sand in Bondi’s Bay, and it needs sufficient water levels to provide waves that don’t completely shut down straight. It was an excellent start to the day; the water felt cooler, typical of northerly winds. Waves […]

This morning started dark and cloudy but has blossomed into a magnificent spring day; go outside! We’ve got a SE swell at 130 degrees; that means that east-facing beaches will attract a bit more size. NW winds early swinging NE. The sun is out, and it’s warm – max 21. (but it feels warmer). Watercolours […]

Former Aussie WSL star Owen Wright, heard about our heavenly sand banks and has driven down from Byron to see all the excitement. His visit coincides with the first day of Spring and Surfaid’s “MAKE A WAVE” September program. MAKE A WAVE is a Surfaid initiative where you raise money for remote communities of Indonesia […]

Welcome to your Thursday edition of semi-factual, sometimes riveting, Aquabumps daily photo email thing – since 1999. How wild was that hail storm in Bondi last night? My backyard looked like Thredbo! It’s all calmed down now. The swell has plummeted, leaving 1 foot, maybe two footers on various heavenly banks(fact). Today conditions suit the […]

It’s the 3rd super fun surf day in a row. Yes, it’s much smaller this morning and on its last legs, but it’s a superb week in the brine. Multiple peaks have distributed the crowd, but Bondi’s finest frothing grom squad typically will be hogging the best bank. I wouldn’t expect too many scraps if […]

After a night of thunderstorms and the odd sprinkle, we’ve woken to a spectacular Bondi day. Only two more days of winter, then these mornings become warm and long. That’s exciting. The waves have been interesting lately; it’s incredibly inconsistent and tied to specific tidal requirements. This morning, bang on sunrise, I saw some fun-looking […]

Mondays are much quieter at Bondi, especially in contrast to that epic weekend of sunshine (and big crowds), just gone. Yesterday was amazing, with hints of summer. Last night, we were served a fresh, long-period, south swell. An extended period means significant gaps between waves – so you can be sitting there, surfing 1-2 foot, […]

It’s Friday, it’s sunny, it’s initially cold (9) yet warm now (13). It’s surfable, but it’s small. It’s offshore with NW winds and will stay like that for most of the day. Rain is coming on Sunday, so enjoy today and tomorrow. Super sunny today! Things to note: Boardriders on Sunday, but it looks small… […]

Don’t get too accustomed to super early Aqaubumps editions. With more morning light, I can get ahead of schedule (but it only allows me to have 1 Java before posting). The waves were pretty unattractive on the dead low tide. It just needs more water to break in an orderly fashion. Winds are currently WSW […]

It’s surfable today, even though the morning tides were low. It will improve as the tide fills in. Earlier, NW winds groomed 1-2 footers. As more water fills the bay, I expect it to be a tad bigger. The water is brisk (19), but with a forecast of 24 bangers today – you need to […]

I am returning to the morning routine with a very stock-standard Bondi Monday morning. Currently, we have a 5 am (ish) low tide, which is punishing local surfers, dehydrating our fickle banks, and making it quite unsurfable. When we finally get more tide in the morning, there’ll be some joy out there. Plenty of south […]

Ah yes, back in Bondi after a quick visit to Bali. The water was clear, and the sun shone after a night of Sydney rain. The waves look fun, waist to shoulder high earlier. Quite cool though, with brisk offshore breezes. (a bit cooler than Bali!) Nice weekend of sunshine ahead. Sunday looks pleasant with […]

Yes, it’s true. I’ve returned to the tropics. Why not? The water is warm in Indonesia, and they’re in the peak (dry) season here. I’ve never seen Bali airport so busy, and the island has returned nuts-busy self. Nah we’re not hanging with the digital-nomads of Canggu and Kuta. Not for me these days – […]

To compensate for yesterday’s tardiness, this morning’s photos are fresh from the beach (early). Even with the NBN down! Beautiful morning at dawn. Lots of pink highlights above Ben Buckler. Waves are much smaller yet clean. I’d get in before the winds start to howl 20 knots. Bit of an odd day as the mercury […]

No, you’re email is not busted, nor did the work experience kid stuff up….and nah, my NBN wasn’t disconnected by construction works in Bondi – Aquabumps photos are just running late today. These images were shot around 6:30 am but spent most of the day stuck in cameras. It was a glorious sunny day with […]