Wildfinder Kaitoke is the Upper Hutt branch of Wildfinder, Wellington's outdoor experience experts. Based at 160 Incline Road in Kaitoke, at the gateway to the Remutaka Rail Trail, the branch runs bike and eBike hire, trail shuttles and white water rafting, and opens 10am to 5pm year round, weather depending, with bookings highly recommended.
The wider Wildfinder team creates and facilitates outdoor adventures through all-inclusive day trips, tours and equipment hire showing off the best of the wider Wellington area. At Kaitoke that means mountain bike and eBike hire for the Remutaka Rail Trail, a popular bike-hire-plus-shuttle combination, and guided white water rafting — two of Wildfinder's top recommended activities start right at this base.
The company operates from several Wellington-region locations, including Pencarrow, Days Bay, Wellington City and Featherston, and displays a Qualmark Silver Award, supports the Tiaki Promise, and is an official partner of NZ Cycle Trail Great Rides and the Remutaka Cycle Trail. School and corporate group programmes, gift cards and a membership scheme round out the offer, and visitors consistently praise the friendly, well-organised customer service.
At 160 Incline Road in Upper Hutt, on the leafy edge of Kaitoke, Wildfinder runs one of the most useful little adventure bases in the Wellington region. This is the Kaitoke branch of Wildfinder — a company that introduces itself simply as Wellington's outdoor experience experts — and it is where many riders begin the Remutaka Rail Trail. Bike and eBike hire, trail shuttles and white water rafting all operate from here, and the doors are open 10am to 5pm, year round, weather depending.
Wildfinder's mission, as the team puts it, is to create and facilitate amazing outdoor adventures through fantastic all-inclusive day trips, tours and equipment hire showing off the best of the wider Wellington area. The Kaitoke base is a textbook example: instead of needing your own gear, a bike rack or a second car, you can arrive, get kitted out and be riding within minutes. That simplicity is the point — the day becomes about the ride, the river or the trail, not the logistics.
Bike hire is the heart of the Kaitoke operation. Mountain bikes and eBikes give riders the choice between old-school pedalling and a battery-boosted cruise along the rail trail, and both 'Bike hire at Wildfinder Kaitoke' and 'Bike hire plus Shuttle at Kaitoke' feature among the company's top recommended activities.
For riders who would rather not think about logistics, the bike-plus-shuttle combination pairs hire gear with trail transport, making a one-way journey possible without doubling back. Shuttles can also be booked on their own, and the team is on hand with local advice when you book — which the site strongly recommends doing in advance.
Kaitoke is not just for cyclists. White water rafting runs from the same base, adding a splashier way to enjoy the rivers and bush country around Upper Hutt. For a fully guided option, the Remutaka Cycle Trail Highlights Tour bundles a day on the trail into one all-inclusive trip — and it has the testimonials to match. One TripAdvisor reviewer, Tom Hargreaves, called it 'one of the best days out in 2 years in New Zealand', adding: 'We had an absolutely brilliant day out on the Remutaka Cycle Trail Highlights Tour, courtesy of Wildfinder. Despite booking quite last minute, the customer service that we received from the team was fantastic.'
Wildfinder operates from several bases around the region, so a Kaitoke trip can be a stepping stone to more. There is bike and eBike hire at Pencarrow for the lighthouse ride, kayak and stand-up paddleboard hire at Days Bay, eBike hire in Wellington City for the harbour's shared pathways, and bike hire with shuttles at Featherston on the Wairarapa end of the trail. Harbour explorer day trips even fold in ferry tickets between Queens Wharf and Days Bay, linking the capital and the bays by sea and saddle.
Multi-day adventures are on the menu too, with multiday cycle tours and multiday bike and eBike hire for anyone turning the Rail Trail into a longer journey. School groups and corporate groups get dedicated programmes, and gift cards and a membership scheme cover the gift-givers and the regulars.
Wildfinder backs its trips with some serious credentials: a Qualmark Silver Award, sign-up to the Tiaki Promise, official partner status for NZ Cycle Trail Great Rides, a Remutaka Cycle Trail partnership and a sustainability badge from Sustainable Tourism NZ. Beyond hire and tours, the business also runs a bike servicing and repairs workshop and sells ex-fleet bikes and eBikes.
Practically speaking: Wildfinder Kaitoke opens 10am to 5pm year round, weather depending, and bookings are highly recommended. Reach the team on +64 4 562 7760 or at [email protected], head to 160 Incline Road in Upper Hutt, and let one of Wellington's most experienced outdoor outfits handle the rest.