Bulli Beach Surf Forecast and Surf Report

G’day, Rusty here. Let’s be straight—this 16-day look at Bulli Beach is a long, slow grind with precious few windows for a proper paddle. The pattern is dominated by small, weak waves and messy wind, so you’ve gotta pick your moments. The water temperature sits at 64°, which is barely a notch warmer than average for this time of year—nothing to write home about.

Right off the bat, Wednesday the 19th morning offers the first surf. It’s not going to set the world on fire: just 2ft of ESE swell wrapping in at a slow 10 seconds, so the energy is weak (196). Wind is light from the NNE, cross-offshore, so the surface will be clean. It’s surfable, but very ordinary—small, weak, and not much push. That afternoon the wind picks up, gets cross, and the surf turns to junk. Not worth the paddle.

Thursday the 20th morning, the swell drops away to 2ft from the ESE, period falls to a pathetic 6 seconds, and the energy plummets to 29—barely a ripple. Afternoon sees a tiny lift to 3ft from the NE, but the period is still a short 6 seconds. Light offshore wind keeps it clean, but the lack of power makes it a grovel at best.

Friday the 21st morning is similar: 4ft from the NE, period 7 seconds, energy a weak 99. Light W cross-offshore, clean but gutless. The afternoon gets a proper offshore from the NW at 15 mph, but the swell drops back to 3ft and 6 seconds—energy down to 56. Clean but tiny.

From Saturday the 22nd right through to Monday the 31st, it’s a brutal stretch. Waves drop to knee-high or less most days, periods stay short (4 to 9 seconds), and the wind is often cross, onshore, or just messy. Even when the wind is light and clean, the swell energy is consistently in the teens or low 20s. That’s barely surfable—this is a solid week-plus of flatness or frustration. Kite surfers might look at the stronger onshore days, but for a paddle surfer, it’s dead.

Now—there’s a glimmer. Tuesday the 1st of September morning, the charts suddenly wake up. We get 6ft from the SE with a period of 11 seconds, and the energy jumps to a solid 801—that’s substantial. Wind is light from the SSE, just a light cross-onshore, leaving only small wind ripples. The afternoon hangs on with 5ft from the SE, period 10 seconds, energy 511. That’s the standout window: real groundswell, decent size, and enough period to shape up. Bulli is a beach and reef setup, so with a longish 11-second period, expect those waves to stand up nicely on the banks, but maybe a bit straight for a beachie. Still, for this area, that’s the best on offer—just keep in mind the crowd might be a factor (it says ‘sometimes’ around here). This swell is pushing over 5ft, so it’s getting into expert territory; beginners will be out of their depth.

Wednesday the 2nd morning is a ghost: glassy conditions, zero wind, but only 3ft from the SE at 8 seconds, energy a weak 112. Clean but unexciting. After that, it fades again into small, messy stuff through Thursday the 3rd and beyond.

Bottom line: there’s one true call-to-action—Tuesday the 1st of September morning—with solid groundswell and manageable wind. Don’t sleep on it. Everything else in the 16-day window is a waste of wet-suit time. A blank run this long is unusual, but not unheard of—forecasts can change, so keep an eye out.

Rusty.

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