Wild horse and foal need rescue after getting stuck on narrow Outer Banks boardwalk

An odd rescue had to be staged on North Carolina’s Outer Banks after tour guides realized a wild horse and foal were frozen in place on a boardwalk.

The mother and child apparently felt trapped on the narrow bridge, the Corolla Wild Horse Fund reported in a July 14 Facebook post.

“Once they’re on it they basically feel fenced in because it’s narrow and they’re facing away from the only way back off,” herd manager Meg Puckett told McClatchy News.

“These horses are really sensible and levelheaded, and normally don’t panic when they find themselves in a situation like that. A lot of the time they figure it out on their own, but every once in a while need a little help getting turned around, untangled, or unstuck.”

The incident happened on the northern end of the Outer Banks and passing tour guides were the first to realize what was happening. They reported it to authorities, then worked together to get the horses turned around back to the sand dunes.

North Star and her foal did not suffer injuries during the ordeal.

It’s not clear how long they were on the boardwalk, Puckett said.

“I don’t think it was long at all. They weren’t stressed out or panicking,” she said. “I imagine they would have eventually figured it out on their own, but why risk it when it’s easy enough to just help them out a little.”

Getting stuck on boardwalks is an uncommon predicament for the wild herd, which numbers about 100 horses on Corolla.

It last happened in 2020, Puckett said, and it turns out North Star was also involved in that case.

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