Well, I suppose the answer to your question depends alot on your experience. My opinion, after more that two decades as a professional horseman in a few different diciplines, is simply, A Gentle One. Calm and gentle horses that are reasonably predictable have proven, for my clients, employees, and myself, to be safer and more enjoyable. In my experience it is common for relatively inexperienced horsefolks to buy too much horse, thinking they want something "spirited", and folks who have enough experience don't need to ask. Horses are like people, most are decent, some you shouldn't trust, and a few are down right dangerous, regardless of race, creed,... or breed.

I prefer Thoroughbreds or a TB crossed with draft. These have a good long stride and plenty of heart.

Every quarter horse I had and for that matter, my friends, were buckers and bull headed. They did not like to go out and the minute you turned around for home they pulled all the way. I find Arabs too small and high strung for comfort.

I've got a pretty good QH gelding that I like in the mountains he is 16.3 and he just like going and he is one that won't get himself in a bad spot. I'll be hunting elk off him this year. I know there are other breeds that also work but I happen to own QH so thats what I use.

I favor Morgans; in my experience, if you let them trot they can go all day, and can keep up with or out-do most other breeds. Also, they can do anything reasonably well, are level headed, and easy to work with. My second choice would be an Arabian, but they tend to be hotter than Morgans.

Dave

I has studying Morgans ,morabs. I am going to find some to ride and check out.
My experience with arabs has been noy very well trained ones and ones that havent been trail riden much. Scared of sticks on the ground, had one that would try and knock me of on tree branchs(suceeded). Tempermental too.

Gaited horses are fun to ride.

We used to lease several sections of prairie land in east central Alberta to dog trainers who were mostly from the southern US. They nearly all used TW's, made sense to me, they put a lot of miles on every day
That was 40 years ago and sadly i never got to try out a TW in the mountains......i sure liked em on the prairie tho!

I am not a very experienced rider, so I looked for something sturdy, durable, and quiet. Like me, big & slow.
My wife, a more experienced rider, rides a saddlebred mare. I have a Percheron gelding. The saddlebred is a great horse, but you can't beat my draft's temperment and durability. Both are tolerant of idiot riders (like me), both were used previously for therapuetic riding for autistic kids. The saddlebred is very smooth for my wife, The draft, a former buggy horse, can take a 210 lbs. rider, a 60 lbs. roping saddle, and pretty much whatever else you can fit on his back, and plow uphill or down over or through just about anything.