APRS packets carry a path that tells digipeaters how many times the frame may be retransmitted. Shorter is usually better: long paths add congestion without always improving delivery.
North America RF channel for these notes: 144.390 MHz.
Path choice can change with conditions. The best first hop is almost always a digipeater you hear direct (radio digipeat list / mheard), not a path copied from the internet.
By environment
Situation
Suggested path
Notes
Mobile, busy urban / suburban
WIDE1-1,WIDE2-1
Two hops; fill-ins on the first hop
Rural, low APRS activity
WIDE1-1,WIDE2-2
Three hops when the network is thin
Fixed, good antenna / elevation
WIDE2-1
One hop is often enough
American West / mountain digis
WIDE2-2
Common where high digis dominate coverage
Airborne (above a few thousand feet)
none or WIDE2-1
Never use WIDE1-1 airborne — it can flood home fill-ins
Rules that matter
WIDEn-N lets modern digipeaters request N hops and count down as the packet is used — that is how the network limits loops and spam.
Standard mobile pattern: fill-in first (WIDE1-1), main digi second (WIDE2-1).
Do not put WIDE1-1 in the second hop (for example avoid WIDE2-2,WIDE1-1). That pattern tends to wake both main and fill-in digis excessively.
Portable trackers often use WIDE1-1,WIDE2-1 with roughly 2 minute beacons for the full path, or about 1 minute if you only need a short first hop.
