Event details

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  • Date 6:00PM Friday 26th August 2022
  • Location Wainuiomata Regional Park, 10 Whitcher Grove, Wainuiomata, Lower Hutt
  • Duration 3 hours
  • Cost Free - booking required
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This event has been cancelled - for further updates, please check back here or visit our Facebook page

A sky full of stars over Wainuiomata Regional Park

We’ve teamed up with the Wellington Astronomical Society and Remutaka Conservation Trust to bring you this exclusive FREE event.

Wander through some of the oldest trees in the Wellington region, serenaded by native birds as darkness falls. You may even hear the cries of kiwi and rūrū (morepork). This is your chance to explore an area not normally open to the public, including the glowworm-filled access tunnel that links to the Orongorongo Valley.

Wellington Astronomical Society can tell you about Dark Sky awareness and preservation and will provide a telescope for you to search the skies for the Moon and the Southern Cross. You’ll be able to talk to Remutaka Conservation trust volunteers about their Kiwi release programme and how they monitor nests.

Wainuiomata Regional Park is on its way to achieving dark sky place accreditation. As Wellingtonians, we are incredibly lucky to have this in our backyard.

Light pollution in the city washes out our view of the space, and only the brightest stars pierce the glow. Wainuiomata Regional Park is one of the most peaceful spots in the region, yet it has one of the busiest dark skies visible from Earth.

This free event is limited to 30 people, so booking is essential. Reserve your spot by registering today.

Register for this event

What to bring: torches/headlamps (red lenses preferred), sturdy water-proof footwear, warm and wet weather clothing.

This event includes a walk up a steep hill and it will be very dark - a moderate level of fitness is required and not suitable for children under the age of 15.

COVID-19 update: This event will follow government guidelines. Please stay at home if you are feeling unwell.

To help protect you, your whānau, and your community, it is important to keep up the healthy habits we know:  

  • If you have cold, flu or COVID-19 symptoms, please stay home and get a test.  
  • Sneeze and cough into your elbow.  
  • Sanitise your hands before eating (there will be sanitiser available) 
  • Try to maintain 1m distance from others  
  • Do not share food or water with others   
Updated August 26, 2022 at 2:03 PM