Ten Million Steps

M. J. Eberhart, aka the Nimblewill Nomad, was a 60-year-old retired doctor in January 1998 when he set off on a foot journey that carried him 4,400 miles (twice the length of the Appalachian Trail) from the Florida Keys to the far north of Quebec. Written in a vivid journal style, the author unabashedly recounts the good (friendships with other hikers he met), the bad (sore legs, cutting winds and rain), and the godawful (those dispiriting doubts) aspects of his days of walking along what has since become known as the Eastern Continental Trail (ECT). An amazing tale of self-discovery and insight into the magic that reverberates from intense physical exertion and a high goal, Eberhart's is the only written account of a thru-hike along the ECT. Covering 16 states and 2 Canadian provinces, Ten Million Steps deftly mixes practical considerations of an almost unimaginable undertaking with the author's trademark humor and philosophical musings.

M.J. Eberhart (the Nimblewill Nomad) began backpacking in the 1980s and set off on his first uninterrupted long-distance hike in 1998 following his retirement as a physician in Florida. Raised in the Missouri Ozarks, he now lives in Eldon, MO. Since the epic journey retold in Ten Million Steps, Eberhart has repeated the deed hiking yet another odyssian route from Canada to Florida, making him the first person to hike the entire length of the Appalachian Mountains. He has yet to stop, undertaking a major adventure each year. Check out his Web site at www.nimblewillnomad.com for details on his everlasting quest to discover himself and the land beneath his feet.