Wander quotes remind us that there can be a purpose to wander in nature, see the world, and experience new people and customs.

For example, most everyone has heard the quote “Not all those who wander are lost.”

It can be a beautiful thing to deliberately wander. However, as these wander quotes show, there are two sides to everything.

The definition of the word wander itself—”a thought or trip that seems to go nowhere or have no purpose.

An example of a wandering is a walk a person takes without a destination in mind,” makes it seem like it is a useless endeavor or waste of time.

Yet, just because a person might start a walk with no destination in mind, does mean they will not find a great purpose or a destination along the way!

When our minds wander, we lose focus of our thoughts, and often the task at hand.

Research has been ongoing in an attempt to answer whether mind-wandering is a good or bad thing.

Initially, it was seen as something that made us unhappy, and therefore, not in our best interest.

However, new research has determined that mind-wandering is a natural part of how our brains function.

In fact, it appears that thoughts wander about 50% of the time.

Would our brains spend so much time (and energy) wandering, if it was not good for us?

Keep reading through these wandering quotes to inspire you to take a journey that seemingly has no purpose, or to better understand your wandering mind. 

Wander quotes that make the perfect Instagram captions

Pare these quotes with a photo and you will have the perfect Instagram post! Take a look and see which quotes you would turn into a social media post.

1. “Go where you feel most alive.” — Unknown 

2. “How wild it was to let it be.” — Cheryl Strayed

3. “Leave the road, take the trails.” — Pythagoras

4. “Wander without purpose or reason.” — Unknown

5. “Not all those who wander are lost.” — J. R. R. Tolkien

6. “Sometimes it takes a wrong turn to get you to the right place.” — Mandy Hale

7. “Have we ever thought that being lost is our destination?” — Craig D. Lounsbrough

8. “Anyone who needs more than one suitcase is a tourist, not a traveler.” — Ira Levin

9. “It doesn’t matter where you go in life, as long as you go to the beach.” — Unknown

10. “I am much inclined to live from my rucksack, and let my trousers fray as they like.” — Hermann Hesse

Wander quotes about the mind and curiosity

These wander quotes explore the curiosity of our minds. Take a look and see if any of these apply to you.

11. “Never let your mind tell your heart not to wander.” — Unknown

12. “I can just let my curiosity wander unleashed.” — James C. Collins

13. “The mind can wander while still focusing on one task.” — Herbert Benson

14. “I was trying to daydream, but my mind kept wandering.” — Steven Wright

15. “I have a fear of letting my mind wander. I’m afraid it might not come back.” — Jim Davis

16. “We can realize, not that our mind is wandering, but that it was.” ― Mokokoma Mokhonoana

17. “The mind does some of its best wandering when the body’s moving forward.” — A.D. Aliwat, In Limbo

18. “Meditation stills the wandering mind and establishes us forever in a state of peace.” — Swami Muktananda

19. “To be able to walk out the door when you come home from a job and wander into the garden to do a bit of watering gives you time to be creative in your mind.” — Mary Berry

20. “When you procrastinate, you’re more likely to let your mind wander. That gives you a better chance of stumbling onto the unusual and spotting unexpected patterns.” — Adam Grant

Wander quotes about life (and even death)

These quotes remind us to not just wander through our lives right to our death. Find out what matters to you and live a life of meaning.

21. “By the light of our insistent truths we wander into death.” — Edmond Jabes

22. “Time is the deepest wilderness in which we wander.” — Christopher Cokinos

23. “Life has a special meaning for those who wander!” — Paul Sachudhanandam

24. “Whenever I get fed up with life I love to go wandering in nature.” — Andrea Arnold

25. “Our life seems cursed to be a wiggle merely, and a wandering without end.” — Annie Dillard

26. “I sing the joy of wandering and the pleasure of the wanderer’s death.” — Guillaume Apollinaire

27. “My life is like a stroll upon the beach, as near to the ocean’s edge as I can go.” — Henry David Thoreau

28. “I’ll never stop wandering. And when the time comes to die, I’ll find the wildest, loneliest, most desolate spot there is.” — Everett Ruess

29. “The key to a wonderful life is to never stop wandering into wonder.” — Suzy Kassem, Rise Up And Salute The Sun: The Writings Of Suzy Kassem

30. “Wander a whole summer if you can. Time will not be taken from the sum of life.” — John Muir

What makes a wanderer quotes

Are you curious as to what a wanderer is? Take a look at the quotes below to see what makes a wanderer.

31. “The wandering photographer sees the same show that everyone else sees. He, however, stops to watch it.” — Edouard Boubat

32. “She was free in her wildness. She was a wanderess, a drop of free water.” — Roman Payne, The Wanderess

33. “Tell me what you yearn for and I shall tell you who you are. We are what we reach for, the idealized image that drives our wandering.” — James Hillman

34. “What is a Wanderess? Bound by no boundaries, contained by no countries, tamed by no time, she is the force of nature’s course.” — Roman Payne, The Wanderess

35. “A person does not grow from the ground like a vine or a tree, one is not part of a plot of land. Mankind has legs so it can wander.” — Roman Payne, The Wanderess

36. “I have wandered all my life, and I have also traveled; the difference between the two being this, that we wander for distraction, but we travel for fulfillment.” — Hilaire Belloc

37. “I am a free soul, singing my heart out by myself no matter where I go and I call strangers my friends because I learn things and find ways to fit them into my own world.” — Charlotte Eriksson

38. “People who wander are nicer to be with. Movement militates against hoarding possessions and against bigotry, because you are constantly moving across boundaries and having to negotiate with people.” — Robyn Davidson

39. “The center of all my enjoyments is the home wherein are my wife and children, and I have no wish to wander out from that home in pursuit of any pleasures that the world presents.” — Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar II

40. “I’ve always been inspired by small details that make me wander. My mother would ask me, ‘What are you looking at so intensely?’ I would answer, ‘Everything and nothing.’” — Mark Bradford

More wander quotes to offer some perspective

Why we wander is different for all of us. Check out these quotes for more perspective.

41. “I haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on my list.” — Susan Sontag

42. “Wander into the center of the circle of wonder.” — Hongzhi Zhengjue

43. “I am not a wandering slave, I am a woman of choice.” — Lady Gaga

44. “Wandering seemed no more than the happiness of an anxious man.” — Albert Camus

45. “The world is vast and meant for wandering. There is always somewhere else to go.” — Nick Burd

46. “Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.” — Kahlil Gibran

47. “Indeed it is better to postpone, lest either we complete too little by hurrying, or wander too long in completing it.” — Tertullian

48. “I have never known what it feels like to wake up in the morning full of the joys of spring, and wander through the day feeling capable of coping.” — Sarah Lancashire

49. “It is quite cruel that a poet cannot wander through his regions of enchantment without having a critic, forever, like the old man of the sea, upon his back.” — Marianne Moore

50. “No one can live without relationship. You may withdraw into the mountains, become a monk, a sannyasi, wander off into the desert by yourself, but you are related.” — Jiddu Krishnamurti

Should you let your mind wander?

Researchers now believe that mind-wandering is an important part of our cognitive processes.

Letting your mind wander has the potential to bring forth new ideas and perspectives.

However, there are two sides of this debate.

Matt Killingsworth’s Track Your Happiness project concluded that mind-wandering makes us unhappy.

Although data from his research also concluded that our minds wander 47% of the time, it also seemed that when people let their mind wander, their thoughts were usually negative.

Oftentimes, this can lead to rumination.

Rumination, from a mental health standpoint, is one of the co-occurring symptoms found both in anxiety disorders and depression.

Additionally, it is often a primary symptom in Obsessive-compulsive Disorder (OCD) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD).

Ultimately, whether you wander around the city on a cool evening, or let your mind wander is up to you!

Some of our best experiences and adventures begin from an urge to wander.

Many creators and inventors get their best ideas when they allow their mind to wander.

However, it is undeniable that mind-wandering and rumination can make people unhappy.

After reading the wandering quotes, which side of the argument do you stand on?

Share with your friends and leave your thoughts about wandering with us in the comment section below.