Hawke's Bay Orienteering Club

This page is for the Park-O public courses. There are more public courses on the MapRunner page.

February 2024. The Start/Finish marker for courses from Tauroa Rd. car park, lost in cyclone Gabrielle, has been found and put back in place. (The latest maps have version number 20220110 under the map title.)

The club has free permanent orienteering courses available to the public. You can choose to explore any course at your own risk. If you have a mobile phone with camera you can use the iOrienteering App to time your run by scanning the QR codes at the control points.

To use a Park-O course.

Select a course from these maps...
- Sleeping Giant - lower parts of the park
- Te Mata Park - a bit more up & down
Download the course pdf file and print your own map and instructions.
The map and instructions are designed to fit on separate A4 pages.
You can contact us by email at parko (at) hborienteering.com

To use the iOrienteering app to time your run.

Download and install the free iOrienteering app from your phones App Store.
Start the iOrienteering app and follow the onscreen instructions
- Scan the course details QR code on page 2 of the course map
- When you are at the start point scan the Start QR code
- Follow the course on the map, scanning the QR code at each control point
- When you reach the end of the course scan the End QR code
Help and Suggestions for scanning the QR codes is [here]

Maps & Courses

The maps are drawn using orienteering colours and symbols. Study the map legends taking special note of the more dangerous (impassable, uncrossable) features on the map.
The 'North' lines on the maps point to Magnetic north.
Shortened map legends are included with each maps instructions or you can download [Sprint map legend] and [Std. map legend] full legends.
'Line' courses - follow a set course, visiting control points in the order listed on the map. Determine your own best route from the map. The line shows the direction to the next control point, not the route you should take. Do not follow the line between the control points.
'Score' courses - visit the control points in any order, earning points, within a time limit.

SLEEPING GIANT MAPS. (Updated: 9 February 2024)

Maps of the lower half of Te Mata Park, Havelock North.
'M' courses start and finish at the Main Gates car park on Te Mata Peak Rd.
'T' courses start and finish at the old park boundary on the track in from the Tauroa Rd. car park.
Even numbered courses are the reverse of odd numbered courses.
Course lengths on these maps are the estimated lengths of the 'best' route.

Line Courses

[SG-M1], [SG-M2] - 1.5 km, easy navigation using tracks.
[SG-M3], [SG-M4] - 3.3 km, more route choice, mostly using tracks.
[SG-M5], [SG-M6] - 4.0 km, more route choice, mostly using tracks.
[SG-M7], [SG-M8] - 5.0 km, more route choice, mostly using tracks.
[SG-T1], [SG-T2] - 1.9 km, easy navigation using tracks.
[SG-T3], [SG-T4] - 3.5 km, more route choice, mostly using tracks.
[SG-T5], [SG-T6] - 4.2 km, more route choice, mostly using tracks.
[SG-T7], [SG-T8] - 5.2 km, more route choice, mostly using tracks.

Score Courses

[SG-MS], [SG-TS] -Visit as many control points as you can within the 1 hour time limit.

[Top]

TE MATA PARK MAPS. (Updated: 10 January 2022)

Maps of Te Mata Park, Havelock North.
These courses have more difficult navigation and more climb than the courses on the 'Sleeping Giant' map.
Be careful, there are impassable cliffs and very steep terrain on these course.
'M' courses start and finish at the Main Gates car park on Te Mata Peak Rd.
'T' courses start and finish at the park boundary on the track from Tauroa Rd. car park.
Even numbered courses are the reverse of odd numbered courses.
Course lengths on these maps are the straight line distance. You will travel further than that even on the best route.

Line Courses