[mitch aka 2 fish]

see? how fucking hard was that?

[ak_powder_monkey]

find an exped megamat, I have about 300 nights on mine as comfortable as a normal mattress.

I've found I'm 50/50 setting up tent or sleeping in the car, car is great for me as I'm just always on the move, and single. The key is some mosquito netting over the window so you can crack it.

[Adams]

Cabelas' Alaskan Guide tents are pretty decent car camping tents. Good fly coverage, you can stand in them, and they have an integrated vestibule. The vestibule is too small for cooking but good for storing wet crap.

[SLSS]

This is the cot I spend a few weeks/year in, cumulative. https://www.outfitterssupply.com/Roll-A ... fo/WCA120/ With a Thermarest, it's damn near perfect.

AJ is correct on the legs wearing though the floor, though all will wear through if put on rocks/cobble. A friend of mine solves that to an extent by laying out a cheap rag rug. He's very fastidious, and it works to an extent. I voided that problem by embracing Tarp Life, or in season, Under The Stars Life, thus avoiding the puncturable floor. This is especially effective combined with my new/original, fairly bug-free neighborhood.

Another friend uses the same cot I do, topped by a bivy bag. He's happy within, I'd be claustrophobic as hell.

REI makes a good family sized tent. Fatman and the Austrian slept in mine, so you'd have to ask them. I've never used it, I'm a tarp guy.

[upshitscreek]

Having done the big tent, cooking area, etc set up before I’m not sure if your set up/ takedown will be any more enjoyable though.

Yep. It sounds real good on paper, though.

That said, second the Roll A Cot. Kind of a gold standard, made in USA, voted best cot by Better Camps and Gardens types, no bars by your head or feet,etc. this is their full line up...
https://www.camptime.com/collections/cots

Drill out or knife up some tennis balls to help with the floor issue. You know, just like on granny’s walker.

For tents, heavy as hell, but kind of first class,too for car camping, outfitters stuff. Springbar tents(made in USA) or the Kodiak Canvas’ quality knock off. They’re better/safer if you want to heat them up with a mr. heater buddy on a 20lb propane tank if it’s getting cold at night, also. Thick floors that hold up to cots and that kind of crap. I got one of the smaller Kodiak 8.5x6 for early,early,late late season rafting trips and it’s quality. Easy to heat for a 1 person plus gear deal. Kodiak Canvas maybe the knockoff but they make some excellent tweaks to the design, too with straighter walls,better interior space, which sold me on it.
http://www.kirkhams.com/

http://www.kodiakcanvas.com/

And for the love of God, don’t forget the Mr. Heater Portable buddy on a 20lb! give it good air flow for o2 and enjoy that damned,blessed warmth.

This all said, don’t forget what G said. Actual car camping these days for me is crashing in the back of a Suburban with my Mr. Heater going in the off season. Heh.

now i gotta get back to counting sheep. Good luck.

[Redchaser]

Kelly,

I have a large family size dome tent by Kelty, I don't remember the model but it wasn't very expensive and has served us well. The upside to the dome, quick and easy set up, the down side is that the full height of the tent is not a very large area. For sleeping I use a queen sized Simmon's Beauty Rest air bed similar to this https://www.walmart.com/ip/Simmons-Beau ... ected=true . It's one of the high rise ones that is about 2 feet tall when inflated, more comfortable than my bed at home. The down side to the simmons is that the pump that fits it is A/C only, but a small inverter hooked to the car can keep that from being an issue. For cooking while car camping, I got a Camp Chef Weekender 2x 20,000 btu burner propane stove, I also got a griddle that fits over it, the thing rocks. If I'm car camping and not pulling my boat, I have a rack that mounts on my receiver hitch that I use for additional cargo capacity, if I'm doing an extended trip I put the big +- 120 quart ice chest on it and strap a 2 wheel dolly to the top of the ice chest to use for moving that big heavy sucker around the campsite when it's full. On that note, buy a bunch of ratchet straps, they always come in handy for something or another while car camping.

[fallen513]

My dad lives in an old chicken coop and shits in a five gallon bucket.

[Ruddy Duck]

I have a similar tent as Ron. It's a large Kelty dome - 5 or 6 man. The tent is cheap and roomy, but bulky and heavy. It is also not super stable in high winds. The tent wall actually hit me in the forehead as I slept during my last trip to Colorado. It was extremely windy though.

Good camping weather in Lowsyanna is hard to come by, so lately I've been car camping out of a rental following air travel. This really limits what I can bring as I'm constantly fighting the 50 pound limit on our bags [read: dad is cheap]. What I have found is that bringing less and living with less can be more fun than packing all of the comforts.