Overview
Installed a Yeti Wurks Meshtastic Base Station on June 15, 2025, at off grid house on a ridge in Aeneas Valley. This unit is fully off-grid. It’s powered by a solar panel originally designed for outdoor security cameras. Connected via USB-C.
I followed setup instructions from Puget Mesh’s config guide. For testing and daily use, I assigned a secure custom primary channel—labeled “Family.” All other radios were set to always broadcast accurate location to that channel.
Site Layout & Range
- The antenna is ridge-mounted.
- Elevation: ~2850 ft.
- Covers full 40 acres around the site.
- Reaches 1,857 ft to the mailbox cluster down the slope.
- Extends 1.72 miles (crow flies) to the stop sign at Highway 20 & Aeneas Valley Road.
- Connection drops when heading around the mountain. Line of sight only.
Predictive Tools
The Meshtastic Site Planner gave a surprisingly accurate range prediction. Nearly matched our real-world test results. A graphic is attached at the bottom of this article to show coverage prediction.
Why Meshtastic Works Here
Most residents rely on Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS). It’s unreliable. Frequent outages. No real maintenance.
Others use satellite internet or microwave-based internet from NCIDATACOM, which offers VOIP. That service also has its share of problems. Relay towers. Winter shutdowns. Occasional long delays.
Some say, “I’ve got satellite messaging on my phone.”
That includes Apple’s system. In theory it’s great.
In practice, not so much.
Last winter, while Nordic skiing, I met several people who couldn’t get a message out; despite standing in the middle of a wide open field.
Meshtastic avoids all of that.
It doesn’t depend on internet.
It doesn’t depend on a subscription.
No company controls it.
For friends. Family. Hunting groups. Hikers.
This gives you a private, low-power, long-range way to track each other, send text messages, or call for help.
Emergency-ready. Off-grid capable.
Field Review
Almost perfect.
The Yeti Wurks Meshtastic Basestation works great for range. I tested it in Bridgeport, Washington, and it easily outperformed my other handheld Meshtastic radios using similar antennas. Build quality is solid and customer service was helpful on most questions.The main issue is the lack of technical detail on the website. There are no clear specs listed for the hardware and no information on what is in the box. I asked, but did not get a clear answer. I also did not realize it has no WiFi.
For our off-grid setup with this mounted on top of the house ridge, that means we can only communicate with it through another Meshtastic radio or by Bluetooth if we are nearby. WiFi would have allowed us to use Starlink and connect to an MQTT server.
I installed it yesterday, June 15, which happened to be the same day a major Meshtastic firmware update was released. Without WiFi, updating the unit on the roof became a challenge. I had to look into Bluetooth tools for my phone because my laptop had trouble connecting over Bluetooth.
After reading more comments in the Meshtastic Discord group, I realized I could have run a longer USB C cable permanently from the roof. That would have let me update or manage the unit easily from next to the house. Another option would have been to install a small USB-powered router near the antenna to help handle that kind of connection.
The solar panel I used is made for security cameras and charges the unit using a USB C cable, so there is power already available up there.
There is also no information about antenna gain, impedance, or any test results. Having those details would have made planning easier and saved time on testing.
If they add full hardware specs and offer a version with WiFi, this would be a five star product.
Expansion Plans
The valley’s terrain is long and narrow.
Alternating units on ridge tops or placing additional base stations at regular intervals down the valley could fill in the gaps.
Great option for full coverage in nooks and crannies.
Especially useful for remote cabins, ranches, or emergency crews.
Attached graphic: Meshtastic Site Planner prediction for Aeneas Valley ridge station vs real-world signal drops.
