so i finally did my first SOTA activation last weekend, W4C/WM-038 if anyone knows it, and man i was not prepared for how much harder the hike would be with a full pack. i thought i was being smart bringing my KX2 and a 40m EFHW but i forgot the counterpoise at home which i didnt realize until i was already at the summit sitting there sweating through my shirt. ended up just throwing some wire on the ground and it seemed to tune up okay? got 4 contacts which i guess counts but felt like i was leaving a lot on the table. next time im definitely doing a full gear checklist the night before instead of morning of.

haha the forgotten counterpoise is practically a rite of passage at this point. i did something similar on my second activation, forgot my coax jumper and just sat there staring at my radio for a good 10 minutes before i figured out a workaround. 4 contacts still qualifies you so thats a W, even if it doesnt feel like it. the EFHW without a counterpoise is kinda hit or miss depending on terrain, you might have actually been fine with the wire on the ground if the soil was decent. wait till you do one in winter, thats when the real fun starts trying to operate with gloves on

which summit was that? ive been eyeing some of the WM peaks but havent pulled the trigger yet. how long was the hike in? i have a kx3 and was thinking about trying POTA first just to get the hang of field ops before going up a mountain