So ive been chasing summits for about 6 months now and finally decided to just do an activation myself. Picked a 4 point summit about 45 minutes from my house, W4T/SU-something, i have the reference written down at home. Plan is to hike up Saturday morning and try to work 4 contacts to qualify it.

My question is mostly about the alert system. Do i HAVE to post an alert on SOTAwatch or can i just show up and spot myself once im up there? I know self-spotting is a thing but i wasnt sure if people actually do that or if it looks bad to skip the alert. Also im bringing my KX2 with a linked dipole and honestly not sure if i should try 40m or 20m first. The summit isnt super high, maybe 3200 feet, trees around but i should have a decent enough takeoff to the east and west.

Any advice from people who have done this a lot would be great. A little nervous about the whole thing honestly but also really excited to be on the other side of the pileup for once.

You dont have to post an alert but honestly it makes a huge difference in how fast you get your 4 contacts. Chasers watch SOTAwatch constantly and if they see your alert they'll be listening for you. Self spotting works fine once you're up there, lots of people use it, nothing wrong with it at all. Just get the SOTA Spotter app or use the SMS method if you dont have data on the summit.

For 40 vs 20, i usually try 40 first in the morning especially if its a domestic activation, you'll pick up chasers pretty quick with a decent dipole. If the bands are weird or youre not getting hits after 5-10 minutes, jump to 20 and see if you can snag some DX. With a KX2 and a linked dipole you should be totally fine, that's a solid setup. The 4 contacts will come faster than you think once you're spotted. Have fun with it, first activation is really something special.

yeah just post the alert even if its the night before, doesnt need to be perfect. i did my first activation without one and it took me like 25 minutes to get 4 contacts which felt like forever when im standing on a windy ridge haha. second time i posted an alert and had my 4 within like 3 minutes of calling CQ. chasers are super active and friendly, dont worry about being new to it.