Hunting in Manawatu/Whanganui
141 DOC permit areas, 43 huts, 3,555 unformed legal roads — and what each of them means before you go.
What has been recorded here
- Peafowl 691
- Wild turkey 352
- Brushtail possum 94
- Rabbit 72
- Sambar deer 45
- Red deer 36
- Feral goat 34
- Brown hare 13
- Fallow deer 13
- Feral pig 6
Most of these are logged by the public rather than by hunters, so a cluster is a real sign the animal is about and out where it can be seen — it is not a record of where people hunt. But records follow tracks, roads and campsites, so empty country usually means nobody has walked it with a phone rather than that there is nothing there. Presence, not density.
Occurrence data from GBIF.org.
Where you can hunt
DOC files 141 hunting permit areas in Manawatu/Whanganui. Public conservation land needs a permit, and each area carries its own conditions and closures — which are DOC’s to set and worth reading for the block you pick.
3,555 unformed legal roads run through the region — public roads that were surveyed and never built. Many cross private farmland, and you may pass along one without asking anybody, though the paddocks either side stay private.
Open the map Make a hunt plan Fishing access in Manawatu/Whanganui
1080 in Manawatu/Whanganui right now
1 DOC operation is in its caution period in Manawatu/Whanganui. Baits and carcasses can still kill a dog, and the caution period is the recorded minimum rather than an all-clear.
- Northern Ruahine NPCP caution to 2027-07-05
Every recorded operation, and what it means for dogs
Shows operations recorded by DOC from March 2022 onward. This is not a statement that 1080 is or is not present now. Always follow on-site warning signs and check DOC for the authoritative position.
Huts
43 across 3 parks and conservation areas. 39 you can simply turn up at, and 35 of those have a fire.
Hut locations and facilities: Department of Conservation (CC BY 4.0), via the DOC open data hub.
Ruahine Forest Park33 huts
- Alice Nash Memorial Heritage LodgeTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Aranga HutTurn upShelter only
- Barlow HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Cattle Creek HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Colenso HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Crow HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Forks HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Gold Creek HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Iron Bark HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Iron Gate HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Kelly Knight HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Leon Kinvig HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Maropea Forks HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Mckinnon HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Mid Pohangina HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Ngamoko HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Otukota HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Parks Peak HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Piripiri HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Pourangaki HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Purity HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Rangiwahia HutBook aheadFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Ruahine Corner HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Sparrowhawk BivvyTurn upMattressesWaterToilet
- Te Ekaou HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Toka BivvyTurn upMattressesWaterToilet
- Top Gorge HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Top Maropea HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Triangle HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Waikamaka HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Waipawa Forks HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Wakelings HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Waterfall HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
Whanganui National Park7 huts
- Downes HutBook aheadFireMattressesWaterToilet
- John Coull HutBook aheadFireMattressesWaterToiletCooker
- Ngapurua HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Omaru HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Pouri HutTurn upWaterToilet
- Puketotara HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Tīeke Marae/kāingaBook aheadFireMattressesWaterToiletCooker
Waitōtara Conservation Area3 huts
- Puteore HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Tahupo HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
- Trains HutTurn upFireMattressesWaterToilet
Before you walk in
This is a snapshot of DOC’s hut dataset, not a live feed — DOC last refreshed it in April 2026 and has flagged it for replacement. Huts close, burn down, get booked out and get alerts put on them. Before you commit to sleeping in one, open its DOC page and check.
“Turn up” means first come, first served — carry a Backcountry Hut Pass or tickets, and expect company. The rules about firearms and carcasses near huts are the same everywhere and worth reading once.
Asking for private land
Most of Manawatu/Whanganui is somebody’s farm, and that is where the animals a landowner wants fewer of usually are. Find the block on the map and we work out the postal address without ever showing you who owns it; you print one page, they scan the code and answer.