What a beautiful day for a hike! I had a little break between events at the conference I was attending and decided to go hit a local trail near the hotel. Parking was easy in the neighborhood near the trailhead. The trail was very rocky, and a loose scramble in many sections. I wouldn’t consider this a difficult hike though as it was not a steep ascent.
Upon arriving at the summit, I had a few mountianbiker inquire about what I was up to. I’m reminded again that I should have a QR code or something I can give them, like a SOTA business card to send home.
This was a rough activation for me. I struggled to get my 4 contacts. I started on 2m CW with no takers. I did find a portable station on 2m FM. I caught one S2S with AJ6X, and then came back to 2m CW. I must have called CQ on 20m for about 20 minutes with no takers. I’m glad I got the 4th contact before I had to bail. Huston, KK6WT texted me to sked on 2m CW. I could hear him from the LAFD Fire Station, but he couldn’t hear me back. Bummer. Thanks for trying Huston!
Activation Hike Path
How Hike Stats Are Calculated
These figures are derived automatically from your GPX track file.
Hiking Time & Distance
Time and distance accumulated while moving outside the activation zone at a speed above the stationary threshold (default 0.3 km/h). Periods where you were stopped — waiting at a trailhead, taking a break — are excluded and counted separately as Rest Breaks.
Rest Breaks
Stationary periods outside the activation zone lasting longer than the rest threshold (default 3 minutes). Anything shorter is ignored as normal GPS noise or a momentary pause. Rest break time is shown inside the Hiking Time box for reference but is not added to hiking time.
Activation Time
All time spent inside the activation zone, regardless of whether you were moving or stationary. This captures the full period from when you first entered the zone to when you left — including any walking around the summit, setting up gear, and operating.
The activation zone boundary is determined by one of two methods (see below).
Total Time
The elapsed time from the first to the last GPS trackpoint in the file. This equals Hiking Time + Activation Time + Rest Breaks + any unclassified transition time at the boundaries.
Elevation Gain & Loss
The cumulative altitude gained and lost across all trackpoints. Each uphill step between consecutive points adds to gain; each downhill step adds to loss. Out-and-back routes will show roughly equal gain and loss.
Hiking Speed
Average speed calculated as Hiking Distance ÷ Hiking Time. Only moving segments outside the activation zone are included, so rest stops and summit time do not drag the average down.
Peak & Base Elevation
The highest and lowest elevation values recorded in the GPS track. The highest point is also used as the starting reference for the activation zone when the API method is used.
Activation Zone Methods
API-based zone (currently active): The boundary is retrieved from activation.zone using Digital Elevation Model (DEM) terrain data and the official SOTA rule — the zone extends to where the terrain drops 25 metres below the summit. This is the most accurate method and matches what SOTA adjudicators use.
Contact Map
Activation Logbook
My Summit: W6/SC-368
| Date / Time | Callsign | Frequency | Mode | Their Summit | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 10, 2026 22:24 | N3XUL | 146.58000 | FM | ||
| July 10, 2026 22:49 | AJ6XS2S | 14.05600 | CW | W7O/CE-009 | |
| July 10, 2026 23:14 | NT6E | 144.10000 | CW | ||
| July 10, 2026 23:17 | KD7RT | 144.10000 | CW |
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