Opening Hours Summer 6am-8:30pm Winter 6am - 6.30 pm Warning! Security Guards will lock you in.
Horse Riding at Sanders Rd Reserve
Just behind Paremoremo prison, Sanders has some lovely views on a good day, and makes for a lovely relaxing ride on most days. 3kms of dedicated equestrian trails, basically a fenced off paddock on the side of a hill. There are 22kms of bike trails as well as walking trails, and off leash dog areas.
Trails and Terrain
The original plan for this park, was to have a perimeter bridleway, but this has never been built. Fortunately, everyone ignores the 'rules' , and shares very amicably, so just go ahead and ride around the whole place.
Use your brain - don't ride in the kiddies area, or through the minibike track. I would recommend staying off bike trails that are very wet, and please give way to all cyclists (they are their trails!). There's plenty of space for everyone, and plenty of grass for us to ride on.
You can also extend your ride by riding out of the park and up Merewhira road which has nice wide berms and is generally a quiet road.
The trails are poorly built. Most are made out of GAP (sharp rocks), and were topped with pea gravel (that almost immediately ran off down the hills with the first rain). There are also trails that have been made with weed mat sprinkled with limerock. The weed mat is, of course, showing through the limerock. They are slippery, shiny, flap in the wind, and make some interesting visual, and sound effects for horses.
Riding on the grassed areas is best. Do be aware there are some old fence post holes, and some drains, that are hidden and could cause serious injury. These are mostly up the top of the park, but do take some care.
BEWARE! There are reasons that trails haven't been created in some areas. In 2014 a horse was buried up to it's neck in a sinkhole near one of the water areas. Stick to the formed trails near streams or dams.
Getting There
Sanders Rd can only be accessed from Merewhira Rd. The section of Sanders road that shows on the map as connecting to Paremoremo road is closed to all public traffic and controlled by the prison.
To get to Sanders Rd, head for Paremoremo Road, then turnoff at Merewhira Rd, and turn left onto Sanders Rd. The entrance is near the end of Sanders Rd, on your right. Drive up the driveway (which is a little tight, so be careful of oncoming traffic) then loop around the parking area to the dedicated horse truck parking near the entrance to the horse trails entrance.
There are 5 pull-through float\ truck loading areas next to the gate that leads to the equestrian trails. All traffic is directed past these spaces, so do be aware of where your horse is when saddling\unsaddling.
There are no mounting blocks, and the gate can be difficult (if not impossible) to open from horseback if you're on a tall horse or not very flexible. There's no problem leaving it open to mount up from your float or truck.
Clean up manure in the parking area. Chuck it on the gardens or take it home.
