T-Beam Supreme LoRa APRS SOTA Hiking Tracker
A lightweight, multi-day LoRa APRS position tracker built on the LILYGO T-Beam Supreme for SOTA hikers and backcountry adventurers to share real-time GPS coordinates without cellular coverage.
Overview
This project by Richard M1HAX demonstrates building a compact, long-range APRS tracker using the LILYGO T-Beam Supreme (ESP32-S3, SX1262 LoRa, integrated GPS) for Summits on the Air (SOTA) activations and general hiking. The device broadcasts your GPS position over LoRa spread spectrum radio to internet-connected APRS iGates, making your location visible on aprs.fi worldwide — without any cellular signal or subscription fee.
Why the T-Beam Supreme?
Compared to the original T-Beam, the Supreme model brings the ESP32-S3 processor, the more sensitive SX1262 LoRa modem, and a newer GPS module (L76K) in a slightly more refined package. At mountain elevations, the 100 mW LoRa transmitter can reach iGates more than 100 km away, dramatically outperforming handheld radios that draw 5–50 W. Battery runtime stretches to several days on a single 18650 cell, versus hours for traditional VHF APRS trackers.
Build Details
The firmware is the open-source CA2RXU LoRa APRS Tracker, flashed using a browser-based web installer with no development environment required. Total cost is approximately £68 (board £45, 3D-printed case £15, 18650 battery £8). The complete assembled unit weighs around 140 grams. The project also demonstrates integrating APRS messaging for self-spotting on SOTAwatch, allowing the tracker to send an automated activation alert to the global SOTA database when you reach a summit.
