One of the most common sayings on the Appalachian Trail is the phrase ‘No Rain; No Maine’. The Appalachian Trail is over 2100 miles long. It stretches from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mount Katahdin in the Baxter State Part of Maine. Most hikers that want to ‘thru-hike’ (meaning – hike the entire trail in one year) will begin in Georgia due to the milder Spring weather in the South and hike north. They call themselves ‘Northbounders’. It will usually take about 5 or 6 months to hike the entire trail. However, the trail up to the last mountain in Maine will close on October 15 (earlier if the weather is too bad).
On those days that the weather is miserable along the trail, it is not uncommon to take a break, a ‘zero-day’ as they call it. Taking zero days now and then is recommended because your body needs the rest. However – taking too many zero days will get you behind and may make it very difficult to reach Mount Katahdin before it closes. So – some days you must walk in the rain. Walking in the rain stinks! You get wet. Your pack gets wet. Your shoes get muddy. You will slip and slide down the trails. The uphills are harder. The downhills are harder. The views disappear. There is nothing fun about hiking in the rain. So, they keep telling themselves: “No Rain; No Maine”. They must walk in the rain at some point if they are ever going to make it.
The Christian life is not easy. There will be valleys and difficult times. These are not the times to quit. These are not the times to get off of the “trail” or turn around in frustration. We are going to have to walk through the “rain”, the valleys of life, the obstacles that come our way and trials that plague our path if we are ever going to hear “Well done, thou good and faithful servant”.
