Ain't No Mountain High Enough! 60+ Mountain Quotes To Get You To The Summit

The pull of doing the impossible, pushing beyond our physical threshold, and reaching the mountain summit has pulled professional climbers and laymen alike to make the trek up dangerous and treacherous mountaintops. And when they do, they join an elite group of people who have successfully reached the top and looked down at the rest of us. Mount Everest, the tallest mountain in the world, has only had 4,000 climbers reach its peak, no wonder it keeps attracting daredevils who want to add their name to the list. But, obviously, not all of us can climb Everest — or want to, for that matter. For most of us, that steep hill on a hiking trail can feel like a mountain. The satisfaction of reaching the top and looking at the valley laid out below can bring us closer to nature, push our limits, and give encouragement to keep going. For others, the mountaintop is metaphorical and represents inner strength to cross all the hurdles that come our way.

Whatever the summit means for you, these mountain quotes from athletes, literary giants, and environmentalists will have you packing your bag and heading up that hill.

1. “Nothing lives long, only the earth and mountains.” — Dee Brown
2. “It isn’t the mountains ahead that wear you out; it’s the pebble in your shoe.” — Muhammad Ali
3. “When preparing to climb a mountain, pack a light heart.” — Dan May
4. “Always be thankful for the little things… even the smallest mountains can hide the most breathtaking views!” — Nyki Mack
5. “The climb speaks to our character, but the view, I think, to our souls.” — Lori Lansens
6. “I like the mountains because they make me feel small. They help me sort out what’s important in life.” — Mark Obmascik
7. “The mountains are calling and I must go.” — John Muir
8. “In the presence of eternity, the mountains are as transient as the clouds.” — Robert Green Ingersoll
9. “You are not in the mountains. The mountains are in you.” — John Muir
10. “Although I deeply love oceans, deserts, and other wild landscapes, it is only mountains that beckon me with that sort of painful magnetic pull to walk deeper and deeper into their beauty.” — Victoria Erikson
11. “Every mountain top is within reach if you just keep climbing.” — Barry Finlay
12. “The higher you climb on the mountain, the harder the wind blows.” — Sam Cummings
13. “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
14. “Each fresh peak ascended teaches something.” — Sir Martin Conway
15. “Life’s a bit like mountaineering — never look down.” — Sir Edmund Hillary
16. “Mountains know secrets we need to learn. That it might take time, it might be hard, but if you just hold on long enough, you will find the strength to rise up.” — Tyler Knott
17. “Over every mountain, there is a path, although it may not be seen from the valley.” — Theodore Roethke
18. “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.
19. “The mountains whisper for me to wander; my soul hikes to the call.” — Angie Weiland-Crosby
20. “Mountains are earth’s undecaying monuments.” — Nathaniel Hawthorne
21. “When faced with a large project, remember you move a mountain one stone at a time.” — Catherine Pulsifer
22. “The summit is what drives us, but the climb itself is what matters.” — Conrad Anker
23. “I slow down when hiking. The rhythm of nature is more leisurely. The sun comes up, it moves across the sky, and you begin to synchronize to that rhythm.” — John Mackey
24. “Climb the mountain so you can see the world, not so the world can see you.” — David McCullough Jr.
25. “Getting to the top is optional. Getting down is mandatory.” — Ed Viesturs
26. “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
27. “The farthest mountain is the one you think you can never reach and it may even be just by the side of you!” — Mehmet Murat ildan
28. “Mountains are the beginning and the end of all natural scenery.” — John Ruskin
29. “I love to sit on a mountain top and gaze. I don’t think of anything but the people I care about and the view.” — Julian Lennon
30. “Everyone wants to live on top of the mountain, but all the happiness and growth occurs while you’re climbing it.” — Andy Rooney
31. “Climbing is my art; I get so much joy and gratification from it.” — Jimmy Chin
32. “He who climbs upon the highest mountains laughs at all tragedies, real or imaginary.” — Friedrich Neitszche
33. “Earth and sky, woods and fields, lakes and rivers, the mountain and the sea, are excellent schoolmasters, and teach some of us more that what we could learn from books.” — John Lubbock
34. “Somewhere between the bottom of the climb and the summit is the answer to the mystery why we climb.” — Greg Child
35. “Only mountains can feel the frozen warmth of the sun through snow’s gentle caress on their peaks.” — Munia Khan
36. “Highest of heights, I climb this mountain and feel one with the rock and grit and solitude echoing back at me.” — Bradley Chicho
37. “The experienced mountain climber is not intimidated by a mountain — he is inspired by it.” — William Arthur Ward
38. “Our task, regarding creativity, is to help children climb their own mountains, as high as possible. No one can do more.” — Loris Malaguzz
39. “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
40. “The great thing about reaching the top of the mountain is realising that there’s space for more than one person. And you’re now in the prime position to help others up.” — We Dream of Travel
41. “There’s always gonna be another mountain

I’m always gonna wanna make it move Always gonna be an uphill battle Sometimes I’m gonna have to lose Ain’t about how fast I get there Ain’t about what’s waiting on the other side It’s the climb.” — Miley Cyrus

1. “And into the mountains I go to lose my mind and find my soul.” — John Muir
2. “You’re off to Great Places! Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting, so… get on your way!” — Dr. Seuss
3. “I’m always looking for a new challenge. There are a lot of mountains to climb out there. When I run out of mountains, I’ll build a new one.” — Sylvester Stallone
4. “Never measure the height of a mountain until you reach the top. Then you will see how low it was.” — Dag Hammerskjold
5. “May your dreams be larger than mountains and may you have the courage to scale their summits.” — Harley King
6. “Mountains are only a problem when they are bigger than you. You should develop yourself so much that you become bigger than the mountains you face.” — Idowu Koyenikan
7. “When the sun is shining I can do anything; no mountain is too high, no trouble too difficult to overcome.” — Wilma Rudolph
8. “Our peace shall stand as firm as rocky mountains.” — William Shakespeare
9. “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
10. “The way up to the top of the mountain is always longer than you think. Don’t fool yourself, the moment will arrive when what seemed so near is still very far.” — Paulo Coelho
11. “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
12. “When you stand at the bottom of the mountain and look up at the mountaintop, the path looks hard and stony, and the top is obscured by clouds. But when you reach the top and you look down, you realize that there are a thousand paths that could have brought you to that place.” — Roz Savage
13. “The mountains are the last place where man can feel truly wild.” — We Dream of Travel
14. “You can’t move mountains by whispering at them.” — Pink
15. “The hardest mountain to climb is the one within.” — J. Lynn
16. “The best view comes after the hardest climb.” — Unknown
17. “If you think you’ve peaked, find a new mountain.” — Unknown
18. “When life gives you mountains, put on your boots and hike.” — Unknown
19. “I’ve realized that at the top of the mountain, there’s another mountain.” — Andrew Garfield
20. “Only when you drink from the river of silence shall you indeed sing. And when you have reached the mountain top, then you shall begin to climb. And when the earth shall claim your limbs, then shall you truly dance.” — Khalil Gibran