The mountains are stunning, there’s just no doubt about that. When you climb a mountain you’re going to want to take pictures and probably post them on Instagram. I don’t blame you – I do it too. I mean, one of my favorite funny mountain quotes is “did you even climb the mountain if you didn’t take a picture and post it on Instagram?!”
But you’re going to need a great caption to accompany that perfect Insta pic. Honestly, when I go to post on Instagram sometimes coming up with the caption is the hardest part. I often want something unique, but it also needs to be witty, maybe a little funny, oh, and inspirational too! It isn’t easy.
As a lover of the written word and a self-proclaimed “quote addict”, I’m always looking for great quotes and phrases that work perfectly in the Instagram caption world. I also love the mountains, so this blog is obviously right up my alley.
Here, I’ve come up with more than 100 mountain captions that will work perfectly on Instagram (or any other social media for that matter.) They are my personal favorites that I’m sure you’re going to love too!
Unique Mountain Captions
These next few mountain captions are ones that I’ve actually written myself. They are original captions that you won’t find anywhere else (unless of course, somebody has copied them from me.) Feel free to use them on your Insta, with credit of course. I love seeing my quotes and captions on social media!
Each of these captions means something special to me. I’ve also included a brief explanation of a few of them just in case you needed some clarification about what I was thinking when I wrote them. I have written these captions and quotes with Instagram in mind. To me, they describe a vivid picture or match a certain situation that with the right image, would be really powerful.
“When climbing to a mountain peak, it isn’t just the mountain that challenges me, it is myself.” – Inspire with Quotes
“There isn’t a mountain peak I’ve been to that I didn’t fall in love with.” – Inspire with Quotes
“When you start to feel down, it might just be time to change your altitude.” – Inspire with Quotes
Note: The above mountain caption says “altitude”, not “attitude.” I know, I missed that the first time too.
“There is no view more breathtaking than the one you climb to.” – Inspire with Quotes
“Challenge yourself: leave your phone at home when you go hiking in the mountains.” – Inspire with Quotes
“The biggest reality check you’ll get amongst mountains is realizing how small you are.” – Inspire with Quotes
Quote Explanation: Being near or on top of towering mountains has a way of making a person feel insignificant or small. As a reality check, this is important because it keeps our egos at bay and reminds us that we are just one very minuscule piece of this huge world.
” ‘I don’t want to go to the mountains today,’ said no one ever.” – Inspire with Quotes
“And just when my feet start to pulse, my back aches, my legs are tired, I can’t catch my breath, and I’m dead tired – I feel the most alive. That’s the irony of hiking in the mountains.” – Inspire with Quotes
Quote Explanation: The challenge that comes from hiking creates the best reward!
“Inhale, exhale. Have gratitude for the mountains.” – Inspire with Quotes
“Once I reach a mountain peak I always take a moment to look down at my feet. These two little feet carried me all the way up here! Thanks, feet.” – Inspire with Quotes
Popular Mountain Captions
These next 20 or so mountain captions are famous mountain quotes, phrases, or even popular proverbs. These are captions you might’ve seen before on Instagram. But don’t be turned off by their popularity, remember that the popularity of a quote means it is powerful and speaks to many people. If you’re building an engaging audience on Instagram, then a popular mountain caption might captivate more people – just a thought.
“If you think you’ve peaked, find a new mountain.”
Quote Interpretation: Continue to challenge yourself. Always find challenging “mountains” to climb, whether that be an actual mountain or a metaphor for life’s greatest challenges.
“Everyone wants to live on top of the mountain, but all the happiness and growth occurs while you are climbing it.” – Andy Rooney
“It’s not the mountain we conquer but ourselves. “– Sir Edmund Hillary
“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
“Over every mountain, there is a path, although it may not be seen from the valley.” – Theodore Roethke
Quote Interpretation: There is a way to overcome the hardest obstacles in life. Sometimes the path is not always clear at the beginning, but you will get there.
“When life gives you mountains, put on your boots and hike.”
“You are not in the mountains. The mountains are in you.” -John Muir
“We don’t stop hiking because we grow old. We grow old because we stop hiking.” – Finis Mitchell
Did you know: John Muir is an important historical figure in regards to national parks and wilderness conservation in the United States. He was known as “John of the mountains” and is credited for helping preserve the Yosemite Valley and Sequoia National Park with his activism efforts. John Muir has written tons of influential quotes about mountains – many of which you’ll find on this blog.
‘’The most dangerous thing you can do in life is play it safe.’’ – Casey Neistat
“Wherever you go becomes a part of you somehow” – Anita Desai
“There is no WIFI in the mountains, but I promise you will find a better connection.”
“I took a walk in the woods and came out taller than trees.” – Henry David Thoreau
“Good climbing is about climbing with heart and with instinct, not ambition and pride.” — Bear Grylls
“My father considered a walk among the mountains as the equivalent of churchgoing.”— Aldous Huxley
“Despite all I have seen and experienced, I still get the same simple thrill out of glimpsing a tiny patch of snow in a high mountain gully and feel the same urge to climb towards it.” – Sir Edmund Hillary
Did you know: Sir Edmund Hillary was one of the first men to summit Mount Everest. He, alongside his Sherpa, Tenzing Norgay, completed the climb in 1953 as the first people to stand atop this huge peak. He is a New Zealander who trained at New Zealand’s tallest mountain, Mount Cook. You’ll find that lots of quotes about climbing mountains are written by Sir Edmund Hillary.
“The clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness.” – John Muir
“To walk in nature is to witness a thousand miracles.” – Mary Davis
“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
Quote Explanation: Just take it one step at a time. Eventually, you will make it to where you wanted to be.
“Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.” – Helen Keller
“I am never lost in the mountains, its where I find myself.”
“Say yes, and you’ll figure it out afterwards.” – Tina Fey
Short Mountain Captions
Short, sweet, and impactful. These next few mountain captions are some of my personal favorites. I love when only a couple of simple words translate into a huge meaning. It always amazes how even just four words strung together in the right combination can ignite an entire internal conversation within ones’ self. Have a read, I think you’ll see what I mean.
“Think outside. No box required.”
“How wild it was, to let it be.”— Cheryl Strayed
“Hike more. Worry Less.”
“You move a mountain one stone at a time.”– Catherine Pulsifer
Quote Interpretation: You can’t do everything in life all at once. Things take time, step by step – or stone by stone.
“Fresh air, don’t care.”
“Anywhere is ‘within walking distance.’ ”
“Go where you feel most alive.”
“Great things are done when men and mountains meet.”— William Blake
“Kid, you’ll move mountains.”― Dr. Seuss
“Mountains are the answer. Who cares what the question is?”
“All good things are wild and free.”
“There are no shortcuts to any place worth going.” – Beverly Sills
Quote Interpretation: Things that are worth doing or achieving are worth working for. (Yes, I just described a quote with another quote – you get the point.)
“Coffee, Mountains, Adventure.”
“Clouds come and go, the mountain remains.”― Meeta Ahluwalia
“The mountains were there and so was I.”— Maurice Herzog
“The deepest sea has a bottom, the highest mountain has a summit.”— Chinese Proverb
Quote Interpretation: There is always an end to the lowest of lows, but also an end to the highest of highs.
“The mountains are calling and I must go.” – John Muir
“You never climb a mountain on accident – it has to be intentional.”– Mark Udall
Read More: I have a blog about the very best short mountain quotes – check it out!
Funny Mountain Captions
Some of the best mountain quotes are funny. I mean, who doesn’t like to laugh?! I’ve found my favorite funny mountain quotes that would work perfectly as Instagram photo captions. I hope they make you smile as much as they did for me.
“Sometimes you just need to change your altitude.“
“Having been bred amongst mountains I am always unhappy when in a flat country. Whenever the skirts of the horizon come on a level with myself I feel myself quite uneasy and generally have a headache.”– James Hogg
“Life’s a bit like mountaineering – never look down.” – Edmund Hillary
“Walking: the most ancient exercise and still the best modern exercise.” – Carrie Latet
Why I love this Quote: Quotes about walking in nature remind us that when we combine walking with being in nature, we get an excellent combination! There really is no better exercise or way to fuel the soul.
“When preparing to climb a mountain – pack a light heart.” – Dan May
“Because in the end, you won’t remember the time you spent working in an office or mowing the lawn. Climb that goddamn mountain.”— Jack Kerouac
Quote Interpretation: Although I’m sure this one has a metaphorical meaning too, to me the literal meaning is great on its own. The mundane tasks of everyday life do not create memories, but climbing mountains does!
“Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting, So… get on your way!” – Dr. Seuss
“In the mountains, you are sometimes invited, sometimes tolerated, and sometimes told to go home.”— Fred Beckey
“What do you call an amazing day up a mountain? A peak experience.”
“Sometimes you just need an adventure to cleanse the bitter taste of life from your soul.”
“I like being near the top of a mountain, One can’t get lost here.”– Wislawa Szymborska
“Mountains make me believe that nothing can be bigger than nature, not even human ego.”― Jay Kumar Singh
Quote Interpretation: Mountains are huge and attempting to climb them can be a humbling experience.
“Why are mountains always sleepy? Because they n-Everest.”
“You need mountains, long staircases don’t make good hikers.”– Amit Kalantri
“Climbing is as close as we can come to flying.”— Margaret Young
“After a day’s walk, everything has twice its usual value.” – G.M. Trevelyan
“Getting to the top is optional. Getting down is mandatory.” – Ed Viesturs
“I love waking up in the morning not knowing what’s gonna happen or who I’m gonna meet, where I’m gonna wind up.” – Jack Dawson
“Hiking and happiness go hand in hand or foot in boot.” – Diane Spicer
Inspiring Mountain Captions
Inspirational quotes and captions are the most common when it comes to mountains. Mountains are huge, they make us realize how small we really are. This perspective inspires us and fuels motivation – or at least that’s what I find anyways.
These next captions are meant to inspire you to climb that mountain, or overcome that challenge as it relates to life in general. In terms of a mountain caption for Instagram, I see most of these captions alongside a beautiful mountain view photo. Whimsical and thoughtful.
“The experienced mountain climber is not intimidated by a mountain he is inspired by it.” – William Artur Ward
“I like the mountains because they make me feel small… They help me sort out what’s important in life.”― Mark Obmascik
Quote Interpretation: It’s true, spending a day in the mountain puts your own life into perspective.
“Every mountain top is within reach if you just keep climbing.” – Barry Finlay
“The cliche is that life is a mountain. You go up, reach the top and then go down. To me, life is going up until you are burned by flames. Life is an accomplishment, and each moment has a meaning and you must use it. Life is given to you like a flat piece of land and everything has to be done. I hope that when I am finished, my piece of land will be a beautiful garden, so there is a lot of work.”— Jeanne Moreau
“Happiness is not at the top of the mountains but in how to climb it.”– Confucius
“The secret of the mountain is that the mountains simply exist, as I do myself: the mountains exist simply, which I do not. The mountains have no “meaning,” they are meaning; the mountains are… I understand all this, not in my mind but in my heart, knowing how meaningless it is to try to capture what cannot be expressed, knowing that mere words will remain when I read it all again, another day.”– Peter Matthiessen
“Pursue some path, however narrow and crooked, in which you can walk with love and reverence.” – Henry David Thoreau
“Man can climb to the highest summits, but he cannot dwell there long.” — George Bernard Shaw
“May your dreams be larger than mountains and may you have the courage to scale their summits.” – Harley King
“Adventure isn’t hanging on a rope off the side of a mountain. Adventure is an attitude that we must apply to the day to day obstacles of life.” — John Amatt
“Mountains, according to the angle of view, the season, the time of day, the beholder’s frame of mind, or any one thing, can effectively change their appearance. Thus, it is essential to recognize that we can never know more than one side, one small aspect of a mountain.”— Haruki Murakami
Quote Interpretation: To me, this quote is a metaphor referring to getting to know people. There’s more to any object or person than what first meets the eye, any appearance is situational.
“The summit is what drives us, but the climb itself is what matters.”— Conrad Anker
“Each fresh peak ascended teaches something.” Sir Martin Convay
“Climb mountains, not so the world can see you, but so you can see the world.”– 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
“Great men are rarely isolated mountain peaks; they are the summits of ranges.”– Thomas W. Higginson
“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
“How you climb a mountain is more important than reaching the top.” — Yvon Chouinard
Quote Explanation: The journey is more important than the destination.
“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
“In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.” – John Muir
“Any coward can sit at home and criticize a pilot for flying into a mountain in a fog. But I would rather by far die on a mountainside than in bed.” — Charles Lindbergh
Find more quotes…
As you can probably tell by now, I love quotes and I also love the mountains. Luckily for me, these two passions go hand-in-hand on this blog. Check out the rest of my blogs about mountain quotes – if you didn’t find what you needed here, then you’ll surely find it elsewhere on this site.