A good discussion. Just remember that all equines are dangerous under certain conditions. For the mountains, cold blooded breeds do best like Quarters, but I have ridden some excellent little Arabs that were handy to get on and never quit. They had never been ridden by women or God forbid little girls. There are plenty of grade horses that can do the job.
The best mule of my life was out of a Missouri Fox Trotter mare. I got her to flat walk but never tried really to get her to gait because her trots were pretty flat. She had sense and size and could really travel. She did not panic which is the hardest part to accomplish. She was good around bears, but got a little tense around big cats.
Leading pack animals from the ground has been practiced around the world for many centuries. There is little to go wrong. That is worth thinking about on remote trips where you can get bucked off in rough country 40 miles from the nearest dirt road.
It is ironic that at age 62 my packing days are over due to some bad wrecks but I am now backpacking again. I would love to go on a long trip leading a couple of donkeys of a bunch of llamas. My adventerous trips with horses and mules took place when I was a younger man and could take hitting the ground better. I still wake up in a cold sweat some times thinking about the wrecks "out there" before cell phones and sat phones. Don't let peer pressure make you ride if you are not up to it.
Last edited by ppine; 08/05/12.
