Sydney’s city beaches aren’t regularly celebrated for their quality waves. In the east, real estate sales records are set, reality TV shows are shot and the active wear is ubiquitous. And while a good Botox treatment is readily available, the barrels are generally in short supply.
However, occasionally this eclectic corner of Australia tosses up a bank that warrants wider attention.
Last week the city-surfing hordes descended on Bronte where an outer bank was gripping chunky, six-eight-foot swells and twisting them into throaty barrels.
Resident photog, Bill Morris was on hand to capture the episode. Bill has been surfing Bronte for almost half a century and reckons it’s one of the best banks he’s seen in a while. “It doesn’t get that big and that hollow very often,” commented Bill. “It’s probably the best I’ve seen it since July 2011.”
Amidst the finance moguls, the celebrities and the influencers, Sydney’s east is still home to a core group of surfers who saddle-up when the waves get solid. Bronte in particular has a rep for producing hard-charging locals. Last Thursday and Friday names like Tom Gooch, Jack Johnson (not that one) and Adam Perica were uttered in awe-struck tones as they took on Bronte’s outer-bank; watched on by the swarm of onlookers who typically gather on the coastal walkway. Resident lifeguards, Lukas ‘Boo’ Street-Wong, Chris Chapman, Mario Marfella and Luke Faddy also made their presence felt in the heaving seas.
On the Friday morning the swell turned more east, squaring up on the bank in a way that created barrels and beatings in equal measure. One wash-through set reportedly snapped three boards and half a dozen leg-ropes.
When large southeast swells funnel into Bronte’s rocky-cove, getting out can be a nightmare. Some punters persisted with the paddle-out while others took their chances on the notorious, Bronte rock-jump, one of the most perilous water-entries on the east coast. Get it wrong and the consequences can be serious.
Being on good terms with the lifeguards came in handy for the local boardriders on the Saturday. Although the swell had faded slightly, the bank was still churning out quality rights. Serendipitously, Bronte had a local boardriders comp scheduled for the day. A contest bank awash with weekend warriors is perhaps an organiser’s nightmare. However, with a little help from the jet-ski mounted Lifeguard team, the Bronte club was able to ensure competitors had priority. “There were still some epic ones,” enthused club stalwart and committee member, Luke Morris. “It was the best boardriders we’ve had in a while. Just a really good community day.” The opens was taken out by Adrian ‘Taco’ Kovacic, who famously surfed Bronte solo on a massive day back in 2022. While lifeguard Chris Chapman won the masters, Rugby League immortal and Bronte regular, Andrew ‘Joey’ Johns was also reportedly ripping.
Before you rush to sample the Bronte super-bank, be warned that the recent barrage of swell seems to have washed away the sand. It might be some time before the city-beach shows shades of Inside Sunset again.
Photos: Bill Morris.
