Derek Andrews Finishes Thru-Hike in October

"Hampton Bays hiker conquers Appalachian Trail" is the headline over the article by Vera Chinese in the 31 October 2008 Southampton (NY) News. The article records the completed thru-hike this summer by University of Vermont student Derek Andrews. He summited on 10 October.

His father, Stuart Andrews, thru-hiked in 2006.

"After soliciting the advice of his father, Mr. Andrews said he made only minimal preparations prior to the start of his journey. ... Protein shakes and bars, freeze-dried foods, ramen noodles and Pop-Tarts were the staples of his diet. 'I went extremely minimalist,' he said. ... In terms of expense, Mr. Andrews said that some people can spend thousands of dollars hiking the trail while others can do it for virtually nothing. He estimated that he spent about $5,000 on equipment, lodging, food and—his largest expense of all—local bars. 'That's the big expense,' he said, smiling. 'You go to town and you just want to relax.'"