Battle Hill Farm Forest Park

Battle Hill Farm Forest Park is a great place to introduce children to a farm. There is so much for them to see and do.

• Feed the farmyard hens
• See the lambs in spring
• Look in the woolshed and see how sheep are shorn
• Help the ranger bring the sheep into the yards and have a close look at their wool

Find out more about Battle Hill's working farm.

Free group visits

The park ranger will introduce the animals and talk to your group for up to an hour. Children usually enjoy a walk around the park afterwards. The centrally located Ken Gray Education Centre is an ideal base for your visit, close to parking and toilet facilities.

Organising your visit

Bookings are essential - contact the Park Ranger by email at battlehill.ranger@gw.govt.nz to book your visit. 

A trip can be arranged at short notice if the ranger is available. As Battle Hill is a working farm you will need to book your group during the appropriate season if you wish to focus on a specific farming activity such as shearing or lambing.

Educational visits can be held in inclement weather as long as it does not jeopardise the safety of the group or the livestock. Talk to the ranger if in doubt.

We will need to know:

• Your preferred date and time
• The name and contact details (address, phone number, email) of the accompanying teacher or instructor
• The year or age level of your group
• The total number attending
• Any special needs or medical concerns (all toilets are wheelchair accessible)

Adult supervision

To make sure you have a safe and orderly visit, each group needs to comply with Ministry of Education regulations for student/ teacher ratios. We ask that the teachers and supervisors be directly responsible for the groups.

Please keep your group from unduly distressing the stock animals. The animals are not pets, and most try to avoid human contact (Maisie the sheep being a distinct exception!). Do not chase, try to pick up or ride the animals.

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You are welcome to walk and hike throughout the park but keep to the tracks if it's wet.

Some tracks are shared with horse riders and mountain bikers but they must give way to walkers. The front paddocks and bush reserve are closed to horse riders and mountain bikers. 

Battle Hill Farm Forest Park Trail Map

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Tracks for walkers and hikers only

Horse riders or mountain bikers may not use these tracks. 

Shared tracks

Everyone can use these tracks - walkers, hikers, horse riders, and mountain bikers.

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Battle Hill Farm Forest Park provides a range of tracks for intermediate and advanced mountain bikers.

All tracks are shared with horse riders and walkers so keep to the left and watch for others.

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With its variety of terrains, good parking and easy access from the road, Battle Hill Farm Forest Park is a great place to ride your horse.

All riding tracks are shared trails with mountain bikes, walkers. A number of pony clubs and other organisations use the park for their horse riding activities.

Things to keep in mind 

• Follow the horse riding code for all regional parks
• Park your horse float in the Dell loop carpark
• Horses can be led over the stream to the paddock behind the homestead for grooming
• Remove all hay, twine and horse manure from around your float before you leave
• Pay attention to water restrictions in the park and don't use hoses to clean your horse if water restrictions are in place
• Jumps are there for organised events only - casual use is not permitted
• No riding in the front paddocks or the bush reserve

Tracks

When conditions are wet, the park may be closed to horse riding.

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"If you want a bit more of a camping adventure but you are not quite ready for the full bush experience this is the place. A stream runs through it for the kids to paddle in, there is a flat grassy area to pitch your tent, and proper toilet facilities (not long drop!)"  Tripadvisor

Camping is open 365 days a year and during our winter months (May-November) there is no need to book. During the summer months (December-April) it is usually a good idea to book your campsite as it has become a very popular place; especially on weekends and holidays. Please feel free to contact us for any information about the facilities.

Please contact the Park Ranger to book your campsite

We operate on a first come, first served basis. The limits on camper numbers at Battle Hill is in accordance with the capacity of our septic tank system.

Facilities

• Flushing toilets
• Dell carpark electric BBQ at no extra charge - please clean it after use

• Our drinking water requires boiling prior to consumption as of 11 April 2022

You can also bring your own portable gas BBQ for cooking. 

Campervans

Campervans and caravans are welcome to park anywhere in the designated camping area. We do not recommend crossing the ford to the farthest campsites with long buses or campervans.

There is no dumping station at Battle Hill. 

Camping stay limits

You can stay up to:

• 40 days within a 12 month period
• 14 days in the period between December 20 and January 31

Fees

Unpowered sites

Paying for your stay

Please pay via the Pay Machine located at the front of the Homestead Information Centre (first building on your right as you enter the park). It will ask you to enter your vehicle registration, total number of adults, total number of children (aged 5-16), then tap your credit or debit card. No EFTPOS is available. All credit/debit card payments are emailed to the Ranger as a report. The ranger will come by the evening and check all camping fees are paid daily.

There are several spots to have your horse stay overnight in the park while you are camping. To book an overnight stay for your horse, please contact wellingtonrda@xtra.co.nz.

Dogs

As Battle Hill is a working farm, dogs are not permitted in the park.

Alcohol

Alcohol may be consumed responsibly by those over the age of 18. Underage drinking is not permitted in the park. Drunken and disorderly behaviour is not permitted and will result in eviction and trespass from the park. Fines of up to $20,000 apply. 

Security

The park opens at 6am and is closed each night at 6pm (1 Apr – 30 Sept) or 8pm (1 Oct – 31 Mar). If you need to leave outside opening hours, please contact the Park Ranger at battlehillranger@gw.govt.nz. We recommend parking outside of the gates if you are joining friends for dinner or will be arriving late back from a bike ride/walk.

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Battle Hill is very popular for wedding ceremonies and photographs, and its traditional farm setting helps create unforgettable images of your perfect day.

There is no charge to take wedding photographs in the park. However, we do not reserve sites for non-commercial photography purposes.

Please contact the ranger battlehillranger@gw.govt.nz to reserve particular sites in the park for your wedding ceremony, including the garden around the homestead.

The following charges apply:

• $200 for the ceremony

You will need to arrange your wedding reception elsewhere.

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So much of the work done in the regional parks wouldn't be possible without the help of people in our communities. If you want to contribute to the care of Battle Hill Farm Forest Park, you can join one of our community groups.

Volunteering in our parks

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There are lots of good places to fly drones or UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) in our parks and reserves, and there are some places where they should not be flown. No matter where you want to fly, you need to be aware of New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) rules and fly your drone safely. 

Where can I fly my drone in parks?

Suggested areas suitable for flying UAVs include:

• The ‘air strip’ area at Battle Hill Farm Forest Park (except during lambing/ calving season)

Avoid:

• Recreation trails when busy. Unless you can obtain ‘prior permission of all the park users you wish to fly above’ (as per CAA rule).
• Any areas where organised events or gatherings are taking place, unless permission has been obtained for example, as part of an event permit. 
• Anywhere in parks where paragliders take off or fly over. This includes Mt Climie In Pakuratahi park, Whitireia Park cliffs, Baring Head/ Orura-pouanui southern cliffs. If there is paraglider in airspace nearby, please stop flying your drone.

Six key rules all drone users should know:

• Always fly below 120 metres
• Don’t fly over people without permission
• Keep your drone in sight at all times
• Stay 4 km away from aerodromes and helipads
• Give way to all manned aircraft. Land immediately
• Don’t fly over property without permission

Drones must not be flown in the following places:

• All designated picnic areas. This includes picnic areas in Kaitoke Regional Park, Queen Elizabeth Park, Tunnel Gully Recreation Area, the lower dam area at Wainuiomata Recreation Area, Cannon Point in Akatarawa Forest, Baring Head lighthouse precinct in East Harbour Regional Park, and Onehunga Bay car park and picnic area in Whitireia Park.
• All designated camping areas. This includes Kaitoke Regional Park and Battle Hill Farm Forest Park.
• Areas of Battle Hill Farm Forest Park and Belmont Regional Park seasonally closed for lambing and calving
• All wetland and nesting or roosting bird habitat areas in parks
• Closer than 30 metres to any vehicles, boats or park buildings or structures (note that Wellington Harbour is all controlled airspace, if you do have permission to fly over the harbour, please stay at least 200 metres away from large commercial shipping).
• In other locations when asked to cease flying by a Park Ranger or member of the public 

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How Battle Hill got its name

Battle Hill's name is no accident. It acknowledges the site of a historic battle in 1846 between the Government forces and around 250 of Te Rangihaeata's men near the summit.

The history of this area has it all - kidnapping, arrests, canons and warfare.

The short story

On 6 August 1846, 250 British troops along with armed militia and police, stood in the freezing rain, ready to attack the 150 men from Te Āti Awa, and 100 men from Ngāti Toa on the hill.

The terrain and native bush made things tricky for the British, they were reluctant to advance and afraid of a counterattack. Instead, they bombarded the pa with mortars (canons).

This went on for days until on 13 August it was discovered that Te Rangihaeata had slipped away under cover of darkness and heavy rain, never to return to his turangawaewae, or place of standing.

The longer story - growing tension in Wellington

In the years leading up to 1846, the relationship between the Crown and Māori was breaking down. The New Zealand Company was trying to buy large parts of land for Pakeha settlers, but the Ngāti Toa iwi, led by Te Rangihaeata, was resisting pressure to sell.

This came after Te Rangihaeata had been involved in killing 22 settlers in a land dispute at Wairau in 1843. Settlers wanted him punished and were looking for signs that he would not continue to disrupt their settlement.

There was a lot of fear from settlers around the conflict and deaths, and that's when Governor Grey launched a two-pronged plan to secure Ngāti Toa land.

Battle in two phases

The first phase was to kidnap/arrest Te Rauparaha, a war leader of Ngāti Toa, from his pa in Plimmerton, and then the way was clear for the second phase where he launched an attack on Te Rangihaeata and his allies.

Starting in the Hutt Valley, a mixed group of around 500 British troops, police, militia and Te Atiawa allies, joined forces to converge on Te Rangihaeata's at Pauatahanui. They found it deserted and chased him through dense native bush up the Horokiwi Valley to what is now Battle Hill Farm Forest Park.

They were joined by a few hundred Ngāti Toa warriors under the leadership of Rawiri Puaha, but these men turned out to be loyal supporters of Te Rangihaeata, and had been supplying him with ammunition and assistance in his eventual escape.

The loss of a chief

Te Rangihaeata built himself a temporary pa on a hard-to-reach ridge near the summit of Battle Hill. When the Government forces attacked, Te Rangihaeata's men returned fire, killing three Government troops and stopping the attack for a while.

The Government troops sent to Porirua for mortars (canons) and settled into a siege where they bombarded the pa for several days.

By 13 August, Te Rangihaeata had lost nine people and with some of his Ngāti Toa iwi, he fled north to the Horowhenua, never to return to his home.

The Ngāti Toa had lost Te Rangihaeata and Rauparaha and was demoralised and left without leadership. They finally gave in to the Crown's demands for the sale of their land, selling over 608,000 acres in the Wairau and 25,000 acres in Porirua, including what is now Battle Hill Farm Forest Park. In return, Rauparaha was released and they were paid a few thousand pounds. 

Battle Hill farm & the Abbott family

In 1860, the bush-covered land was sold to the 62-year-old Henry Abbott. He set about clearing the land of bush and stocking it with cattle.

Henry died in 1882 and the farm passed down to his sons Roderick and Nicholas. It remained in the family until 1975.

Greater Wellington purchased the park in 1987.

Henry Abbott, his son Henry and his daughters Maria and Delia, are buried at Battle Hill in a small graveyard, alongside two of the three militiamen killed in the battle in 1846. 

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