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61 Perfect Quotes About Climbing Mountains

These quotes about climbing a mountain are designed to motivate and inspire you to tackle the nearest mountain! They include inspirational quotes about climbing mountains, short mountain climbing quotes for Instagram, climb the mountain quotes, quotes on mountain trekking, funny mountain climbing quotes, and life is like climbing a mountain quotes.

We have been travelling the world for over 10 years and during that time we have spent a lot of time in the mountains so we have included some of our favourite mountain photos to go with our favourite quotes on climbing mountains.

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If you are looking for mountain quotes in general here is a list of specific mountain quotes:

Don’t forget to check out this guide on what to pack for a day hike!

We also have other lists of quotes and captions about nature including the sun, waterfalls, sunsets , forests, rivers, lakes, trees, mountains, the sea, sunshine and sunrise.

Scroll on through to find your favourite mountain caption or jump ahead to the category that interests you most.

Inspirational and Motivational Quotes About Climbing Mountains

These are our favourite inspirational quotes for climbing mountains that will motivate you to achieve new heights. So, if you are looking for some inspiration to help you conquer mountains, this list is for you. If you like this list of inspirational climb the mountain quotes check out our lists of Short Inspirational Quotes, Inspirational Morning Quotes, Inspirational Quotes for Today, Funny Inspirational Quotes and Inspirational Quotes for Work.

“Climb the mountain not to plant your flag, but to embrace the challenge, enjoy the air and behold the view. Climb it so you can see the world, not so the world can see you.”

– David McCullough Jr.

“You cannot stay on the summit forever; you have to come down again. So why bother in the first place? Just this: What is above knows what is below, but what is below does not know what is above. One climbs, one sees. One descends, one sees no longer, but one has seen.”

– Rene Daumal

“Everyone wants to live on top of the mountain, but all the happiness and growth occurs while you’re climbing it.”

– Andy Rooney

“There’s no glory in climbing a mountain if all you want to do is to get to the top. It’s experiencing the climb itself – in all its moments of revelation, heartbreak, and fatigue – that has to be the goal.”

– Karyn Kusama

Mountain covered in snow with a inspirational quotes about mountain climbing on top
The Ama Dablam mountain from above the base camp on our trek around the Everest region.

“The choices we make lead up to actual experiences. It is one thing to decide to climb a mountain. It is quite another to be on top of it.”

– Herbert A. Simon

“You never climb the same mountain twice, not even in memory. Memory rebuilds the mountain, changes the weather, retells the jokes, remakes all the moves.”

– Lito Tejada-Flores

“You don’t climb mountains without a team, you don’t climb mountains without being fit, you don’t climb mountains without being prepared and you don’t climb mountains without balancing the risks and rewards. And you never climb a mountain on accident – it has to be intentional.”

– Mark Udall

“You climb to reach the summit, but once there, discover that all roads lead down.”

– Stanislaw Lem

People of cliff edge with inspriational climb the mountain quotes.

“Climb every mountain, ford every stream, follow every rainbow, till you find your dream. A dream that will need all the love you can give, everyday of you lif, for as long as you live”

– The Sound of Music movie

“If you are faced with a mountain, you have several options. You can climb it and cross to the other side. You can go around it. You can dig under it. You can fly over it. You can blow it up. You can ignore it and pretend it’s not there. You can turn around and go back the way you came. Or you can stay on the mountain and make it your home.”

– Vera Nazarian

“Getting to the top of any given mountain was considered much less important than how one got there: prestige was earned by tackling the most unforgiving routes with minimal equipment, in the boldest style imaginable.”

– Jon Krakauer

“Accidents on big mountains happen when people’s ambitions cloud their good judgment. Good climbing is about climbing with heart and with instinct, not ambition and pride.”

– Bear Grylls

“When preparing to climb a mountain – pack a light heart.”

– Dan May

Person surrounded by mountains with mountaineering trekking quotes by Dan May

“Climb if you will, but remember that courage and strength are nought without prudence, and that a momentary negligence may destroy the happiness of a lifetime. Do nothing in haste; look well to each step; and from the beginning think what may be the end.”

– Edward Whymper

“And if someday, my sons ask, “Dad, why did you choose to climb?” Smiling, I’ll reply, I climbed so you could fly.”

–Mekael Shane

“As a professional climber, that’s the question you always get: Why, why, why? It’s an ineffable thing; you can’t describe it.”

– Jimmy Chin

Short Mountain Climbing Captions for Instagram

You may be looking for a short quote to use as a caption for climbing mountains for Instagram. We gathered the best captions for mountain climbing for just that purpose! Check out the captions for climbing mountains below and pick the one that works best for your post. You might also like our list of Best Short Quotes that work perfectly for captions.

“Every mountain top is within reach if you just keep climbing.”

– Barry Finlay

Two alpine lakes with a sharp mountain peak behind it and a mountain climbing quotes for Instagram on top - every mountain top is within reach if you just keep climbing
The view from the ridge on the Smutwood Peak hike in the Canadian Rockies.

“The best view comes after the hardest climb.”

“Somewhere between the bottom of the climb and the summit is the answer to the mystery why we climb.”

– Greg Child

“You have to climb the mountain to see the view.”

“Each fresh peak ascended teaches something.”

– Sir Martin Convay

“He who climbs upon the highest mountains laughs at all tragedies, real or imaginary.”

– Friedrich Neitszche

“Stop staring at mountains. Climb them instead, yes, it’s a harder process but it will lead you to a better view.”

“The summit is what drives us, but the climb itself is what matters.” 

– Conrad Anker

Person climbing up steep mountain with short climbing mountain quotes by Conrad Anker

“The experienced mountain climber is not intimidated by a mountain, he is inspired by it.”

– William Arthur Ward

“Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees.”

– John Muir

“Man can climb to the highest summits, but he cannot dwell there long.”

– George Bernard Shaw

If you like short quotes and captions you might also be interested in our other short quotes lists including short sunset quotes, short nature quotes, short sunshine quotes and short sea quotes.

Quotes on Mountain Trekking

Usually before you get to the mountain climbing part you have to do some mountain trekking to base camp. We have a whole list of the best trekking quotes, which includes a large section on mountain trekking. These are our 5 favourite quotes about mountain trekking.

“May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds.”

– Edward Abbey

Man hiking away from mountain with low cloud in front and a mountain trekking quotes on top
We were trekking part of the Three Passes trail on the way to the Gokyo Lakes in Nepal as the cloud chased us up the valley but we eventually climbed above it to see the surrounding mountains.

“I like being near the top of a mountain. One can’t get lost here.”

– Wislawa Szymborska

“Mountain hikes instilled in me a life-long urge to get to the top of any inviting summit or peak.”

– Paul D. Boyer

“Trekkers at high altitudes sometimes sense a person walking a few paces behind them, just out of sight. Often this person is dead. I never feel this, but once or twice I imagine someone walking a little ahead of me.”

― Colin Thubron, To a Mountain in Tibet

Funny Mountain Climbing Quotes

Sometimes funny quotes for climbing mountains are the way to go. Here is a list of the quotes for mountain climbing that struck our funny bone. If you like funny quotes and sayings, you should also check out our lists of Funny Good Morning QuotesFunny Love QuotesFunny Work QuotesFunny Quotes of the DayFunny Quotes About Life and Funny Inspirational Quotes.

“Because in the end, you won’t remember the time you spent working in the office or mowing your lawn. Climb that goddam mountain.”

– Jack Kerouac

“It’s always further than it looks. It’s always taller than it looks. And it’s always harder than it looks.”

– The three rules of mountaineering

“You don’t need to climb a mountain to know that it’s high.”

– Paula Coelho

Everest mountain with snow on it and a funny mountain climbing quotes on top
Mount Everest from the Kala Patthar viewpoint on our Everest Base Camp trek.

“You keep putting one foot in front of the other, and then one day you look back and you’ve climbed a mountain.”

– Tom Hiddleston

“There are two kinds of climbers: those who climb because their heart sings when they’re in the mountains, and all the rest.”

– Alex Lowe

“The higher you climb on the mountain, the harder the wind blows.”

– Sam Cummings

Woman standing on rocks looking at mountains with a mountain quotes funny by Sam Cummings that reads the higher you climb on the mountain the harder the wind blows

“I take all day to climb mountains and then spend about 10 minutes at the top admiring the view.”

– Sebastian Thrun

“Nobody climbs mountains for scientific reasons. Science is used to raise money for the expeditions, but you really climb for the hell of it.”

– Edmund Hillary

If you like humor in your quotes, you might also be interested in our lists of funny hiking quotes and funny hiking captions

Life is Like Climbing a Mountain Quotes

The final section of our list is a selection of ‘Life is like climbing a mountain’ quotes that make some thought-provoking comparisons. Check out our other life quotes for more, including Short Quotes About Life, Inspirational Quotes About Life, Funny Quotes About Life, Enjoy Life Quotes, Live Your Best Life Quotes, Life’s Good Quotes, Happy Quotes About Life , Life and Love Quotes, Love Your Life Quotes, Sad Quotes About Life and Life Changing Quotes.

“Life is like a mountain. Hard to climb, but once you get to the top, the view is beautiful.”

“Life is like climbing a mountain. Except that seeing the peak doesn’t matter. What really matters is your survival through the journey.”

“The cliché is that life is a mountain. You go up, reach the top and then go down.”

Mountain at sunset with yellow glow and a life is like climbing a mountain quote on top
Watching the sunset on the Alps during our 10-day Tour du Mont Blanc hike.

“Life is like climbing a mountain. You climb up to each new ledge and create a camp. If you can’t do that within a certain amount of time, you have to go back down to the previous camp. You can’t hang out on the mountainside.”

– Tim Kelley

“Life is like climbing a mountain filled with uncertainties. The only difference is that mountain climbers know their journey will end at the peak, but we don’t know when or where our life will end.”

– Ankit

“One day’s exposure to mountains is better than a cartload of books”

– John Muir

“No matter how tall the mountain is, it cannot block the sun.”

– Chinese Proverb

“We are now in the mountains and they are in us, kindling enthusiasm, making every nerve quiver, filling every pore and cell of us.”

– John Muir

“How glorious a greeting the sun gives the mountains!”

– John Muir

Three mountain peaks reflected in a stream at sunrise with a mountain view quotes that reads how glorious a greeting the sun gives the mountains

“Tis distance lends enchantment to the view, and robes the mountain in its azure hue.”

– Thomas Campbell

“Mountains are the beginning and end of all natural scenery.”

– John Ruskin

“This mountain, the arched back of the earth risen before us, it made me feel humble, like a beggar, just lucky to be here at all, even briefly.”

– Bridget Asher

“In the presence of eternity, the mountains are as transient as the clouds.”

– Robert Green Ingersoll

A lake with yellow trees and mountains behind and the sun peeking through clouds and a quotes about mountains and clouds on top

“There’s a world out there, and you’ve got to look at both sides of the mountain in your lifetime.”

– Bill Janklow

“Nature is my springboard. From her, I get my initial impetus. I have tried to relate the visible drama of mountains, trees, and bleached fields with the fantasy of wind blowing and changing colors and forms.”

– Milton Avery

“among the clouds we shared a cup of tea the mountain and me”

– Meeta Ahluwalia

A tree in front with a layer of clouds below and mountains in the distance with a quotes about mountains and clouds on it

“Sunlight streamed through grumbling storm clouds that played like tiger kittens around the mountain ridges.”

– Jane Wilson-Howarth

“What would be ugly in a garden constitutes beauty in a mountain.”

– Victor Hugo

“The mountains are calling and I must go.”

John Muir

“Chasing angels or fleeing demons, go to the mountains. ”

– Jeffrey Rasley

Mountain with alpine glow and short mountain Instagram quotes by Jeffrey Rasley

“Mountains are earth’s undecaying monuments.”

– Nathaniel Hawthorne

Captions

If you like these captions about mountain climbing you might also like our lists of Mountain Captions, Funny Hiking Captions and Hiking Captions.

The most dangerous thing you can do in life is play it safe.’

“Go where you feel most alive.

The best view comes after the hardest climb.

On a date with mountains.

I feel big until I get to the mountains

Woman hiking towards mountains

Climb more. Worry Less.

The mountains are my happy place.

Mountains are such great comedians, they are just hill areas

How are you going to climb the peak if you don’t Everest.

Sky above, earth below and peace within

Dear mountains, I think about you all the time.

Person hiking on side of steep mountain with a mountain captions for Instagram

Wild is my favorite color

Another day another summit

Feeling moved by immovable mountains

There is no designer like Mother Nature

Life should have more mountains

A mountain range with dark cloud overhead and a captions on mountains

I prefer the scenic route

You can’t climb up a mountain with downhill thoughts.

You climb mountains a lot. Don’t you Everest?

 I don’t need therapy I just need to climb a mountain

When life gives you mountains, put on your boots and hike

Just the foot of someone hiking up a mountain with mountains behind and a funny mountain quotes on top

I like my mountain climbing with a dose of adventure

The best memories are mountain climbing memories

Halfway to somewhere

Move the body, still the mind

And there you have it! Our list of the best quotes about climbing mountains. Hopefully you found it useful if you needed a quote for inspiration or Instagram. Let us know in the comments below if we missed any that should be added.

We also have lists of the 75 Best Trekking Quotes, Best Mountain Captions for Instagram, and Quotes About Hiking, 95 Hiking Captions for Instagram or Your Next Hiking Adventure that you might want to check out.

Now get out there and climb that mountain!

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Mountains with blue lake below

About the Author

Laynni Locke

Laynni Locke

Laynni has been sharing her travel adventures and day-to-day life on Routinely Nomadic social media for over 15 years and appreciates the importance of finding the perfect quote or caption to showcase those experiences. Putting her extensive writing and education background to good use, Laynni has become passionate about researching and curating comprehensive lists of all the best quotes and captions for every occasion.

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