Five Million Steps: Faith Adventures along the Appalachian Trail
At a glance
First published2020
AudienceAdult
LuvemBooks Verdict
Best for: Christian readers who are active hikers or AT enthusiasts and want a spiritually integrated, section-hiker's memoir that frames a fourteen-year, 2,170-mile journey as an act of faith as much as physical endurance.
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Five Million Steps: Faith Adventures along the Appalachian Trail is Lon Chenowith's memoir of completing all 2,170 miles of the Appalachian Trail as a section-hiker over fourteen years, weaving backcountry adventure with Christian faith reflection at every summit. The book's greatest strength is its rare section-hiker's perspective, grounded in specific friendships, named landscapes, and decades of lived outdoor and ministry experience. It is an ideal read for Christians drawn to outdoor adventure memoir — and a genuine mismatch for secular readers expecting a naturalist or non-devotional trail account.
- Is it worth reading?
- For readers who are active in Christian faith communities and drawn to outdoor adventure, Five Million Steps offers something genuinely rare: a long-term, non-thru-hiker's account of the full Appalachian Trail, grounded in specific people, named friendships, and decades of lived backcountry and ministry experience. The section-hiking format produces an episodic rhythm that differs from the momentum of a standard thru-hike narrative, and the consistent Christian framing makes it a poor match for secular outdoor-memoir readers. Those who fit the target readership — including hikers who have section-hiked or dreamed of it alongside a faith practice, and church reading groups seeking narratives of spiritual perseverance — will find it a compelling and underserved perspective.
- Similar books
- Readers drawn to Five Million Steps may also enjoy A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson, the classic comedic account of attempting the AT that put long-distance trail memoir on the map for a mainstream audience. For outdoor adventure with a strong sense of place and human connection, A Walk in the Park by Kevin Fedarko and River Hippies & Mountain Men by Patrick Taylor are both in the LuvemBooks catalogue. Belonging to the World by Barry Hoffner and She Explores by Gale Straub round out the selection for readers interested in personal journeys through wilderness and the identity questions the backcountry raises.
- Who should read this?
- Five Million Steps sits at a specific and underserved intersection: readers who are active in Christian faith communities, drawn to outdoor adventure, and curious about what a long-term, non-thru-hiker relationship with the Appalachian Trail actually looks like. It is also a natural fit for church reading groups seeking narratives of spiritual perseverance framed through physical challenge, and for hikers who have completed or are dreaming of section-hiking the AT alongside a faith practice. Readers who prefer secular naturalist trail writing, or who want the sustained momentum of a thru-hike narrative, are likely to find it a poor match.
- About Lon Chenowith
- Lon Chenowith is the author of Five Million Steps: Faith Adventures along the Appalachian Trail, a book rooted in a lifelong dream to trek the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine. He has served in Christian ministry across four states as a church planter, pastor, and missionary. He and his wife have two sons, a daughter, three grandsons, and a granddaughter, and his family enjoys the outdoors.
- What are the main themes?
- The central themes of Five Million Steps are faith, perseverance, and the spiritual dimensions of physical endurance. Chenowith frames the Appalachian Trail not primarily as an athletic achievement but as a proving ground — every stretch of backcountry becomes inseparable from questions of spiritual endurance and trust. Friendship and human connection are equally prominent: the bonds formed on the trail, including a 276-mile hiking friendship with Prune Picker, a seminary friend from Texas, are presented as one of the trail's recurring gifts alongside mountain solitude and open-sky conversation.
- Is it self-published?
- Yes — Five Million Steps was independently published in December 2020. The review notes this means it arrived without the editorial infrastructure of a major imprint, and that some readers of self-published trail literature may notice differences in production that can accompany that path. That said, the review identifies the narrative's specificity, credibility, and cohesive structure as genuine strengths that hold up regardless of publishing origin.
Summarize this book
Is it worth reading?
Who should read this?
About Lon Chenowith
What are the main themes?
Is it self-published?
Summarize this book
Five Million Steps: Faith Adventures along the Appalachian Trail chronicles Lon Chenowith's fourteen-year journey to complete the entire 2,170-mile Appalachian Trail as a section-hiker, starting at Springer Mountain in northern Georgia and finishing on Mount Katahdin in northern Maine. Known on the trail by his trail name the Arkansas Traveler, Chenowith climbs at least 237 mountains across fourteen states, beginning with a preliminary hike with his two young sons from Amicalola Falls to Unicoi Gap. The memoir weaves together vivid trail culture — including the tradition of trail names and the unexpected bonds forged in backcountry shelters — with consistent Christian faith reflection, framing every mile as a proving ground for spiritual endurance as much as physical perseverance.
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Age & Reading Level
Recommended age
Adult
Reading level
Adult
Skip if you're looking for a secular, naturalist, or non-devotional Appalachian Trail memoir.
Editorial Review
Five Million Steps: Faith Adventures along the Appalachian Trail is Lon Chenowith's independently published memoir of completing the full 2,170-mile Appalachian Trail as a section-hiker over fourteen years, weaving together trail adventure, backcountry culture, and Christian faith. It is a candid account designed for readers drawn to outdoor memoir and spiritual reflection in equal measure.
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