One of the region’s most popular recreational destinations is at Percy Scenic Reserve, on State Highway 2 just north of Korokoro, 10 minutes out of Wellington.

Locals and visitors flock to the 10-hectare reserve to enjoy a picnic or trek through the lush trees that offer typically New Zealand bush scenery. A duck pond is full of friendly ducks for the kids to feed, and the short walking tracks are easy for most families and leisure hikers.

A feature of one of the walks is a spectacular waterfall, a surprise for visitors who might have only minutes before parked their car just off the busy highway.

The reserve is well known for its conservation of rare and endangered New Zealand plant species, which include Chatham Islands and New Zealand alpine collections. This work began with the Percy family after whom the reserve is named. The family operated a flour mill on the site from the 1840s until 1939. Three sons of the colonist Joseph Percy were keen horticulturists and helped to preserve many native plant species.

When the last son, Arthur, died in 1939, the Crown bought the land and vested it in the then Petone Borough Council. It was developed with the assistance of the New Zealand Native Plant Preservation Society and opened officially as a scenic reserve in 1949. It was expanded with the addition of Percy Gully Reserve in 1952.
Today the reserve is vested in Hutt City Council.

Take a look at ‘Place Finder Hutt City.