[Legate of Amon Lanc]

Originally Posted by Meriadoc1961

I believe there is a statement made by Aragorn to the effect that "Gandalf clearly wished to enter Lorien."

That does not have to mean that Gandalf really wanted to do that. Aragorn (if he said it) only thought that Gandalf wanted to. And that's not to say that we don't know what Gandalf thought: there could have been an agreement to go to Lórien, but Gandalf went there unwillingly (cf. above). It's just a speculation, though, as it was said earlier.

Originally Posted by William Cloud Hickli

He was also I'm sure thinking of the fate of Thrain, who bore a lesser Ring too close to southern Mirkwood.......

One technical note: I wouldn't use the word "lesser" in this case. It was one of the Seven, and the only thing that was "greater" was the One. Thus, you would create two cathegories, one "lesser" (all Rings except the One) and one "greater" (the One). It was the Seven, Three and Nine and the One that were "greater"; the "lesser" were something else (ref.: Shadows of the Past, Gandalf's speech about the Rings).

Originally Posted by Mithadan

I don't believe Gandalf "wanted" to enter Moria. I doubt that anyone other than a Dwarf would have desired to do so at that time. However, he clearly "felt" it was likely that the Fellowship's course would take them through Moria. As some have commented, perhaps he wished to evade detection for a time and take the road less travelled. I would like to suggest that, apart from his wishes and his strategies, perhaps Gandalf "had to" enter Moria.

Interesting thought and possible. But I don't want to speculate about this one, not that it was not interesting, but I'll leave it to someone else. I would like to focus only on the first part. From my point of view, it seems clear that Gandalf preferred the way through Moria above everything else (and now I am speaking only of his own choice, all high-power-leading and similar aspects aside). One similar part was quoted here already a few posts earlier by radagastly, and this, I believe, speaks even more clearly:

Originally Posted by FotR, The Ring Goes South

"Who knows indeed!" said Gandalf. "But there is another way, and not by the pass of Caradhras: the dark and secret way that we have spoken of."

This is a part of a dialogue between Gandalf and Aragorn before the company decides to go through Caradhras. When I read the entire paragraph, I get the feeling - and I'm leaving for you to decide - that Gandalf, in fact, was thinking all the way "The best thing would be to go through Moria!", and he did not advise it only because no one else wanted that (cf. the quote by radagastly). I imagine it almost the same way as he advised the White Council to attack Dol Guldur (and this, interestingly, brings me to similar area of thinking and could go well together with Mithadan's ideas from the last post - because as we know Gandalf, he was not lead only by his own conscious choices in the important moments).