Widely considered to be one of America’s most important and influential naturalists, John Muir was a major force in the preservation of wilderness areas.
He was known for his eloquent prose, and many of his quotes continue to inspire people today. In this blog post, we’ll take a look at some of Muir’s most memorable quotes about nature and conservation.
We hope you enjoy!
John Muir Quotes 2023
1. “The mountains are calling, and I must go.” ― John Muir
2. “How glorious a greeting the sun gives the mountains!” ― John Muir
3. “Keep close to Nature’s heart… and break clear away, once in a while, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean.” — John Muir
4. “We are not in the mountains and they are in us, kindling enthusiasm, making every nerve quiver, filling every pore and cell of us.” — John Muir
5. “Any glimpse into the life of an animal quickens our own and makes it so much the larger and better in every way.” — John Muir
6. “Walk away quietly in any direction and taste the freedom of the mountaineer.” — John Muir
7. “Between every two pines is a doorway to a new world.” — John Muir
8. “I care to live only to entice people to look at Nature’s loveliness.” ― John Muir
9. “One should go to the woods for safety, if for nothing else.” ― John Muir
10. “One day’s exposure to mountains is better than a cartload of books.” ― John Muir
11. “Every hidden cell is throbbing with music and life, every fibre thrilling like harp strings.” ― John Muir
12. “One touch of nature makes the whole world kin.” ― John Muir
13. “Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where Nature may heal and cheer and give strength to body and soul alike.” ― John Muir
14. “There is not a fragment in all nature, for every relative fragment of one thing is a full harmonious unit in itself.” ― John Muir
15. “Nothing truly wild is unclean.” ― John Muir
16. “Hidden in the glorious wildness like unlined gold.” ― John Muir
17. “When we tug at a single thing in nature, we find it attached to the rest of the world.” ― John Muir
18. “We all travel the Milky Way together, trees and men.” ― John Muir
19. “Not blind opposition to progress, but opposition to blind progress…” ― John Muir
20. “Between every two pines is a doorway to a new world.” ― John Muir
21. “Handle a book as a bee does a flower, extract its sweetness but do not damage it.” ― John Muir
22. “I only went out for a walk, and finally concluded to stay out till sundown, for going out, I found, was really going in..” — John Muir
23. “Going to the mountains is going home.” — John Muir
24. “When one is alone at night in the depths of these woods, the stillness is at once awful and sublime. Every leaf seems to speak.” — John Muir
25. “I bade adieu to mechanical inventions, determined to devote the rest of my life to the study of the inventions of God.” — John Muir
26. “God has cared for these trees, saved them from drought, disease, avalanches, and a thousand tempests and floods. But he cannot save them from fools.” — John Muir
27. “Hiking – I don’t like either the word or the thing. People ought to saunter in the mountains not hike!” — John Muir
28. “The clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness.” — John Muir
29. “The snow is melting into music.” — John Muir
30. “There is a love of wild nature in everybody, an ancient mother-love showing itself whether recognized or no, and however covered by cares and duties.” — John Muir
31. “Going to the mountains is going home.” ― John Muir
32. “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
33. “Everybody needs beauty…places to play in and pray in where nature may heal and cheer and give strength to the body and soul alike.” ― John Muir
34. “Going to the woods is going home.” ― John Muir
35. “Another glorious day, the air as delicious to the lungs as nectar to the tongue.” ― John Muir
36. “Yet how hard most people work for mere dust and ashes and care, taking no thought of growing in knowledge and grace, never having time to get in sight of their own ignorance.” ― John Muir
37. “Who wouldn’t be a mountaineer! Up here all the world’s prizes seem nothing” ― John Muir
38. “The clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness.” ― John Muir
39. “When one tugs at a single thing in nature, he finds it attached to the rest of the world.” ― John Muir
40. “Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find out that going to the mountains is going home; that wildness is a necessity” ― John Muir
41. “The world’s big and I want to have a good look at it before it gets dark.” ― John Muir
42. “And into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul” ― John Muir
43. “I only went out for a walk and finally concluded to stay out till sundown, for going out, I found, was really going in.” ― John Muir
44. “In every walk with Nature one receives far more than he seeks.” ― John Muir
45. “I am losing precious days. I am degenerating into a machine for making money. I am learning nothing in this trivial world of men. I must break away and get out into the mountains to learn the news.” ― John Muir
46. “The sun shines not on us but in us.” ― John Muir
47. “The world, we are told, was made especially for man — a presumption not supported by all the facts.” ― John Muir
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Conclusion: John Muir Quotes 2023
John Muir was a conservationist and naturalist who is quoted as saying, “The mountains are calling and I must go.” It’s hard not to feel the pull of nature when reading his words.
They speak to something deep inside us, reminding us of our connection to the earth. As we head into spring, take some time to enjoy the outdoors and reflect on Muir’s wisdom.
Let his quotes inspire you to get outside and explore all that nature has to offer. What is your favorite John Muir quote?