So what is that all about?

The alps are a lot more than a few hundred SOTA references to discover and activate. Usually there are other XOTA (X-any On The Air) references available in the German Alps, e.g. GMA, WWFF, POTA, COTA, etc. In addition to our 20 Jahre Deutsche Alpen Explorer Award you also can take part in an outdoor radio triathlon and GoGreen XOTA at the same time, and earn some nice awards, as an activator, a chaser, or both. The infrastructure is there, hundreds of awards are issued every year, and there are a lot of great activation reports from one alpine spot or another. Even with QRP a mini pile-up is inevitable!

Can you give a specific example of an award?

E.g. in order to receive a bronze award in the activator section, you need to activate any 4 valid references (either SOTA or GMA or WWFF or POTA or COTA) in any 4 regions in the German Alps (AL, AM, EW, WS, KW, BE, MF, CG, BG, AV). There must be at least one activation with the callsign DA20XOTA, three other regions might be activated with your personal call.

E.g. in order to receive a gold award in the chaser section, you must complete all 10 regions in the German Alps. At least 3 regions must be logged with DA20XOTA.

Should I activate/chase only SOTA or only WWFF references to claim an award?

Any mix of valid references is acceptable. E.g. you can activate/chase any of the nine alpine regions within the SOTA framework, but the tenth region AV (Voralpen) does not have valid SOTA references. This means that you must activate/chase any other reference (GMA, WWFF, COTA, etc.) to receive your Gold award. Or you can activate /chase all 10 regions within the GMA framework. X-any mix of valid references is acceptable.

How is a successful activation defined?

A successful activation is defined within the framework of the associated award scheme. E.g. SOTA requires one QSO to qualify an activation, but requires 4 QSOs to get summit points. You must enter or submit your logs with any number of QSOs to the associated award program databank or manager in order to qualify your activation for the DA20XOTA award.

How can I find out which reference belongs to which region?

A list with non-SOTA references assigned to regions is available HERE.The rough boundary for the Alpine regions is formed by the A96-A99-A94 motorways and the state borders in the south. If you feel like some of your favorite references should be included in this list, please contact Dzianis, DD1LD.

I’m interested in operating under the DA20XOTA callsign. Should I use /P?

You are welcome to operate under DA20XOTA. Please contact Mario, DJ2MX directly. The callsign DA20XOTA is used exclusively for portable and outdoor radio operations and only in the German alpine regions, so we dont' use /P. The rough boundary is given by the A96-A99-A94 highways and state borders.

How can I apply for the 20 Jahre Deutsche Alpen Explorer Award?

Please fill out the DA20XOTA Award Application Form and forward it directly to our Award Manager Martin, DF3MC.

How do I get a QSL card?

You do not need a QSL card to apply for the DA20XOTA award, but you can request a QSL card for your personal QSL collection. More details at QRZ.com.

How can I get informed about the DA20XOTA activities?

The schedule for the planned activations is available in the DA20XOTA CALENDAR. The running activities can be monitored live through the portable activity XOTA CLUSTER.

Does DA20XOTA have a Sonder-DOK?

DA20XOTA is an amateur radio club station holding a Sonder-DOK "20DA" that means "20 Jahre Outdoor-Funk in den Deutschen Alpen / 20 years of portable radio in the German Alps".