Friends share knowledge of Belmont Regional Park

The Friends of Belmont Regional Park want to share their knowledge of this diverse area – the hills between Lower Hutt and Porirua – with you this summer.

The volunteer group is organising three events as part of Greater Wellington’s Regional Outdoors programme.

“Belmont Regional Park, with its iconic trig at the highest point, is sometimes seen as hard to get to. It isn’t really as there are good tracks from many entrances. The whole park is full of interesting history, great views and enjoyable landscapes. Come and have a closer look,” says Richard Sadleir of the Friends of Belmont Regional Park.

The Friends also help out with the park projects including pest control and protecting native trees. Bill Milne will lead a two-hour guided walk, Clean, Green and…Goats, in the Korokoro Valley on Sunday, 16 January.

There’s an open day to Discover the Hidden Valley on Saturday, 29 January. It includes sheep shearing demonstrations by the ranger Chris Wootton, a tour of the botany of Belmont and 4WD rides to the top of Belmont trig.

Later in the summer, on Saturday 5 March, you can walk the Old Coach Road. This historic road within the park was the first road link between the Hutt Valley and Porirua.

Park ranger Chris Wootton says, “Greater Wellington is really pleased to be working with the Friends of Belmont to bring you these events. We hope they’ll help bring more people into the park to discover its secrets.”

To book for the events phone 5265330 or email bookings@gw.govt.nz

© Scoop Media

Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>