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Equestrian Trails/Horse Camping Review

Share where you have been--Any State Allowed!
Any information will be appreciated such as: primitive camping? hookups complete with electric and water? picket poles? pens? how many miles of trails? are they well marked? personal experiences?

Reviewed by Terri Folks, Oklahoma Horse Online publisher

Bath house (left) and the covered stalls in the barn. Trailer parking area to the right. Both well kept and extremely neat and clean.

The campfire is on!                                     Inside the cabin.

Loft area with bed.                                            Cabin with front porch.

Looking for a new adventure? In Pineville, Missouri, in the southwestern corner of the state, is a relatively new Horse Camp and Stables called Huckleberry Stables. Huckleberry Stables is owned by Rick and Mary Bousfield. The Bousfields started three years ago with seven acres and a small unfinished cabin. Now with some remodeling of the cabin for their residence, they have added four cabins for guests, a nice barn with covered stalls available, plus uncovered corrals available for their guests with horses ($10 per horse per stay). The cabins are neat as a pin ($40 per night+$5 per extra person). Two have a loft area with a double bed and a futon on the main floor. The other two don't have a loft and have a futon bed and double bed. The cabins are air conditioned and heated and offer a small refrigerator, microwave, coffee maker and eating table. There is a porch for sitting and enjoying the scenic beauty. The bathhouse, also neat and clean, has two showers, two restrooms, and two changing areas (in the women's side). Women value our privacy you know! Between the cabins is a large fire pit for those evening campfires to tell tall tales. Rick supplies wood, when available, for campfires. Picnic tables are also available. There are also hookups for trailers with living quarters and campers. The barn has 11 covered stalls available for rent ($15 per horse per stay). Soon to be open is a tack store. Rick used to make Ortho-flex Saddles in another part of his career. He has also served as a manager of a horse riding operation for tourism in Belize. Hospitality comes naturally for the Bousfields, it truly is a part of their nature.

Right outside the property is the entrance to miles and miles of horse trails through the Huckleberry Forest and State Park. No ATVs are allowed. Some of the trails are very steep and rocky. Others are soft, covered with leaves and gentle inclines. Your horses or mules need to be shod. You will ride to rivers, ride by beautiful bluffs and even through meadow lands. Rick said he has seven days of riding on different trails, just on private property, not including the miles of horse trails in the Huckleberry Park. If your family doesn't ride or you would like to do some other activities, canoeing is popular on the river. Or fishing is also close by with Big Sugar Creek and the Elk River. Golfers will enjoy Bella Vista, Ark., just 10 miles away from Pineville.

Pineville is located on Highway 71 off of I-44 South of Joplin, Missouri. It is a four hour drive (all highway) for those of us who live in the Oklahoma City area.