so i finally did my first SOTA activation last weekend, summit was only a 2 point peak but figured id start easy. threw the KX2 in a pack with a 40m EFHW and just hiked up there. took maybe 45 minutes to the top and honestly the setup was way faster than i expected, had the antenna strung up between two trees and was on the air in like 10 minutes.

managed 12 contacts which i think is enough to count? i was on 40m the whole time and most contacts were pretty quick, everybody seemed to know the drill with SOTA which helped a lot. one guy actually spotted me on SOTAwatch which i didnt even know was happening, suddenly had a small pileup which was fun but also kind of stressful.

anyway my question is about power, i was running 5w and it felt fine but should i bother bringing a bigger battery for 10w on future activations or is 5w basically the standard for this kind of thing

5w is totally fine for most activations honestly, ive done probably 40 or 50 summits now and rarely go above 5w unless conditions are really bad. the KX2 at 10w will eat your battery noticeably faster and for most contacts on 40 or 20 you just dont need it. i usually bring a 3ah lipo and it lasts all day at 5w with no issues. if you start doing winter activations or trying to work DX from a summit then maybe think about it but for now id just stick with what works

congrats on the first one, 12 contacts is a solid activation. yeah being spotted is kind of wild the first time it happens lol. i did my first POTA a few months ago and had almost the same feeling when the pile started. one thing i'd say is try 20m next time if conditions allow, i find i get more varied contacts and sometimes pull in some Europeans which is always cool from a summit