On the second night of the trip to Tulsa we continued south through Iowa, and stopped near Joplin, Missouri to camp in a pasture on Warriors of the Rainbow horse Sanctuary.
We pulled the camper back behind the house and barn, through the pasture, and back against the fence line. This was another site we found via the HipCamp app.
While they sometimes have horses in the pasture where we camped, they had moved them to the pasture next to us for grazing. We did, however, see plenty of evidence (horse apples) that they had recently been in our pasture grazing. And, we did get to watch them on the other side of the fence. We were instructed not to pet or interact with them without the owner being present. I’m sure there are liability issues they have to consider.
All of the horses living there have been rescued or surrendered by owners who could no longer care for them. The sanctuary’s owner is a woman in her sixties who has been riding and working with horses all of her life. She uses all of the camping fees to buy hay for the horses which has enabled her to keep more of them.
We really enjoyed the campsite. The weather was a bit warmer and the stars were as bright. We did miss the bathroom though! And, had we stayed more than one night, we would have been able to help care for the horses. She also offers riding lessons, which would have been such fun!
But, early the next morning we hit the road to Tulsa for our house sit, which we really enjoyed!