Sport Hawke's Bay

SUPPORTING MORE PEOPLE TO INCREASE THEIR CONFIDENCE IN OPEN WATER

A Sport Hawke’s Bay led initiative that supports people of all ages to increase their confidence to swim in open water.

As a coastal region, Sport Hawke’s Bay understands the importance in increasing peoples confidence and knowledge within the open water and have been running block courses since 2012.

These courses take place weekly over a 4 week period depending on weather conditions, focus on how to manage the conditions, entering and exiting the water safely, treading water, extending your stroke, breathing techniques and what to do when feeling anxious.

Please note:

You must be over the age of 14.
Be able to swim 250m freestyle competently in a pool.
These are not learn-to-swim lessons but are more about being able to transfer skills or build on them in open water.

HAWKE’S BAY SWIM PROVIDERS

NAPIER
Greendale Swimming Club
Napier Aquahawks
Napier Aquatic Centre
Swim Solutions Onekawa
Bay City Gym
Ocean Blue Swim School
Bev Mitchell School of Swimming

HASTINGS
Mahora Swimming Club
Heretaunga Swim School

Havelock North
Hilton Brown Swimming
Havelock North Swimming Club

Central Hawke’s Bay
A.W Parsons Pool
Central Hawke’s Bay Swim Club

Clive
Clive Memorial Swimming Pool

Wairoa
Wairoa Community Centre
Wairoa Power Swimming Club

1. Hawke's Bay Trails
Please view the pathways section below for the Hawke's Bay Trails map.

2. Hawke's Bay Regional Sports Park
At the Hawke's Bay Regional Sports Park there is a limestone track around the perimeter measuring approx. 2.2km. This track is also suitable for walking your dogs. Additionally, there is a 400m all-weather track.
Click here to visit the website.

3. Te Mata Park
Standing 399 metres above the Heretaunga Plains, Te Mata Peak is both a visual feature and an integral part of Hawke’s Bay history, Maori and European. Enjoyed by over 200,000 people annually, the Park offers visitors stunning and varied scenery, unique topography, geology, flora and fauna and a wide range of recreational activities. Te Mata Peak has a variety of walking and running tracks anywhere from a 1.3km loop to a 5.4km loop.
Click here to visit the website.

4. Anderson Park
Straddling Greenmeadows and Tamatea, this major passive reserve is used by people from all parts of the city. The children's play area is a great drawcard. In recent years, the Hawke's Bay Model Engineers Club have established a miniature railway system in the southwestern area of the park. There is also pathways around and throughout the park.
Click here to visit the website.

5. Park Island
Park Island is Napier's largest sports reserve and is the home of the Napier Rovers Football Club, Hawke's Bay United, Napier Old Boys' Marists Rugby Club (with its affiliated clubs of Old Boys' Marist Cricket, Marist Netball, Marist Soccer and Marist Softball) and the Hawke's Bay Hockey Association.The active sports areas are flanked by a fitness trail and a walkway network that takes in the former "islands".
Click here to view the website.

6. Dolbel Reserve
With its established network of tracks, the reserve is popular with walkers. There are extensive views east and west from the summit. The park is being developed with plantings of exotic and native trees and shrubs on the lower slopes. Upper grass slopes are managed by grazing sheep while the lower flat area is kept mown. Seats and tables are strategically located on the track system.
Click here to view the website.

7. Sugar Loaf Reserve
Accessed from Cumberland Rise in Taradale, the Sugar Loaf hill (or Pukekura, which is its Maori name), is a prominent landmark that can be seen from most parts of Napier and Taradale. From the summit, the four-hectare reserve affords views out over Napier, Taradale and much of the Heretaunga Plains. The Ruahine and Kaweka Ranges can be seen to the west. Walkers can take an access track across the grazed pasture to the lookout. A survey trig station is established at the summit.
Click here to view the website.

8. Pandora Pond
Pandora Pond in an important wetland sanctuary for a wide variety of wading birds including grey herons, royal spoonbills and pied stilts. Shags, kingfishers and even gannets may also be spotted diving for fish in this area. Along the 3.8km trail, information boards provide information about the history of the area, its flora and fauna and the dynamics of the habitat.
Click here to view the website.

9. Flaxmere Park
It has sports fields, marked for football in the winter and cricket in the summer, a large number of mature shade-giving trees, and a pond.The fenced playground includes swings, climbing frames, slides, a gyroscope and splash pad. There are also picnic tables and a free-to-use community barbecue. The park has adult exercise equipment placed along a walking and cycling track around the park, ki-o-rahi field and nine-hole disc golf circuit.
Click here to view the website.

Napier Harrier Club
The Napier Harrier Club was founded in 1934 and is a family orientated club with over 100 members ranging in age from 7 to 70 and caters for runners of all abilities from beginners to Nationally ranked speedsters.The club holds oganised runs every Saturday from April to October, rain hail or shine. Click here to view their website.

Run/Walk Hawke's Bay
Run Walk Hawke's Bay is a long-standing running and walking club that aims to motivate and assist people to run or walk within their capabilities with the emphasis being on recreational activities. The Club has two branches, one based in Napierand the other based in Hastings. Both have meetings Wednesday evenings and Sunday mornings. Click here to view their website.

Hastings Harrier Club
Hastings Harriers is a running club that meets every Saturday over the winter season, whether it be at the club rooms (Sylvan Road), Te Mata Peak or local lime sand tracks. There is also the chance for competition in cross country and road running events throughout the season. They cater for various age children between the ages of 7 and 18. Seniors 19-35 and then a master division for those aged 35+. Click here to view their website.

parkrun
There are two parkrun weekly events in Hawke's Bay. Anderson parkrun in Anderson Park and Flaxmere parkrun in Flaxmere Park. parkrun is a global organisation providing free 5km timed events every Saturday at 8am at over 2000 locations in 22 countries around the world. All parkrun events are free only requesting that all participants register once online for a free barcode that they can take to any parkrun event anywhere in the world and have their time or volunteer participation recorded - Click here to view their website.

Other
Please view the other walking groups below.