I hunt the Adirondacks in NY. I use to go with other guys but the past five years I go by myself.The coldest I know its been was 11 degrees.One year we were in tree mile from the road. We hiked in with some patchy snow on the ground. 5 days later we were walking though nearly knee deep snow. I had just bought a new sleeping bag the night before we left, Thank god!. I was warm as toast.I've been in other snow while hunting but not as much. If you wish to try this cold camping remember to put the eggs on the fire a few seconds so you can get the shell off the frozen egg.The worst part is getting up in the morning and having to get out of your bag, bend and get your boots on while having to pee

On the stove, it all depends on what kind of camping your doing. Jennmonkey mentioned elsewhere contemplating some backpacking. Most of my camping is on a motorcycle, some in a car. On the bike, I use a single burner Coleman Dual Fuel 533 stove (gas), and actually we manage fine. For backpacking there are even smaller single burner stoves available. When we go in a car, we use a dual burner propane stove, and I'd agree if you can manage the weight and space, it has definite advantages. Occasionally, we've used both to have a total of three burners, and/or used a portable grill. I personally prefer a propane stove to the gas stove that I usually use, and prefer two burners to the one that I usually have available, but what can be carried depends on how one is camping, and we always manage fine with what circumstances dictate.

Cheryl, Welcome to the forum. There are quite a number of frequent members. You will find a lot of helpful info. and tips. Feel free to ask for any advice, someone seems to always come up with the answer. I would love to visit Australia sometime, must be beautiful. With you having some time off now, maybe it's time to get back into camping and see how the kids like it. For the first time, you can even set up in your backyard to see what you forgot and need for the REAL trip. The kids might even like sleeping in the yard. I love winter camping, sitting round a fire in the snow, hot cocoa mug warming your hands, fresh snow on the ground, LOVE it. Dust off your tent and get out there. Lynda

On a recent camping trip, the RV a few spots down had a big screen TV mounted to the outside of his RV. The light pollution from it was incredibly annoying. I hear ya. I've been dismayed on more than one camping outing when, having selected the perfect campsite for our tents and setting up, along comes a ginormous "house on wheels" and parks right next door, generator cranking away all night long and destroying the peaceful vibe. Tent campers can be pretty opinionated and snobby when it comes to how RVers are viewed (and vice versa, I've discovered). My folks recently bought an Airstream and are loving it. Dad always loved tent camping, but now that he's older he does enjoy the creature comforts. My mom certainly wants to be comfortable and never enjoyed sleeping in a tent. I can understand why one might want a travel trailer, but I personally can't see the appeal of going anywhere in one of those RV buses that's absolutely huge. They look like they'd be nerve-wracking to drive, to say the least, and most of them I see are towing a car as well. I'd rather just stay in a very nice hotel, and no doubt come out money ahead. BUT - to each her own. There's really no "wrong way" to get out there and experience this country.