so ive been chasing SOTA for about 6 months now from home and finally decided to actually do an activation this weekend. picked a W6 summit thats only like 2 points but its close and the trail looks manageable. my question is kind of dumb but i want to make sure i understand the summit reference thing before i go — do i need to register the activation on sotawatch BEFORE i head up or can i just post it after the fact? i put an alert up but wasnt sure if that was actually required or just like a courtesy thing so chasers can find you.

also wondering about the 4 contact minimum — does that have to be 4 unique callsigns or can the same person call me twice on different bands and count? probably overthinking this but i dont want to hike all the way up there and find out i did something wrong and it doesnt count. running an ft-818 and a linked dipole, hoping 20m will cooperate. gonna try and get on sotawatch2 the night before to post a proper alert with frequencies.

dont stress too much about it, the alert is definitely just a courtesy thing — not required at all. plenty of people do unplanned activations and just self spot from the summit using the sotawatch app or get someone else to spot them. the 4 contacts do need to be 4 different callsigns though, same person on a different band doesnt count as two QSOs toward your total. at least thats how i've always understood it and my logs have gone through fine.

the ft-818 and a linked dipole is a solid setup for a 2 pointer, honestly you'll probably have a pile up within the first few minutes if you self spot. 20m is hit or miss lately but id also have 40m ready, shorter dipole legs and all that. good luck this weekend, the first activation is always a bit chaotic but in a fun way. just remember to stay in the activation zone and youre golden.

yeah what he said about the 4 contacts. also just wanted to say i was in the exact same spot like a year ago, was so paranoid about messing up the log or being outside the activation zone. turned out fine and honestly the chasers are super helpful, a lot of them will walk you through stuff on the air if youre new. some of them have been doing this for years and they can tell when its someones first time and they're patient about it. have fun up there