So I finally did my first SOTA activation yesterday, went up W4T/SU-001 (at least I think thats the right reference, had to look it up three times before I left lol). Carried my KX2 and a linked dipole up there, took about 2 hours to summit. Got 4 QSOs on 40m and then managed to snag a couple on 20m before the weather got sketchy and I had to pack up fast.

Here's my dumb question though — I logged the contacts when I got home on SOTAwatch but im not sure I entered the reference correctly. It kept autofilling something slightly different than what I had written down. Also I forgot to self-spot while I was up there, had a buddy watching SOTAwatch but he said he never saw me pop up. Does the activation still count if nobody spotted me? I thought you needed at least 4 QSOs for the points and I did get those, just want to make sure I didnt blow the whole thing on a technicality.

Overall it was an amazing experience even if I was fumbling around up there. The linked dipole over a random tree branch actually worked way better than expected. Already planning the next one.

Congrats on the first activation, that's a great feeling isn't it. To answer your question — no you absolutely do not need to be spotted for the activation to count. The 4 QSO minimum is all that matters for the points, and those contacts just need to be logged correctly on the database. Self-spotting helps a ton because chasers can find you, but plenty of activators especially when starting out just work whoever they can find calling CQ or answer general calls and it all counts the same.

For the reference thing, just double check it against the SOTA database at sotadata.org.uk — search your summit name and make sure the reference matches exactly what you entered in the log. If you typo'd it the activation might not show up under the right summit but usually the database managers are pretty helpful about correcting honest mistakes if you email them. Dont stress too much about your first one, everyone fumbles through the logging stuff at the start.

yeah spotting is super helpful for getting chasers to pile on but like the other guy said it's not required. i did my first three activations without ever self-spotting because i kept forgetting and still got credited fine. what radio setup were you running? the KX2 with a linked dipole is kind of the classic combo, curious how you fed it — did you use a short counterpoise or just the two dipole legs?