[270man]

Thanks for all your inputs. I almost forgot to go back and look at this topic, but now see some recent posts. Since passing the age of 60, my wife and I have settled on a metal tent -- actually, a small travel trailer. We can tow it to most of our hunting campsites but there are still some places too rough. I will probably tent camp next javelina season here in Arizona, but the weather is usually great (the early 2009 season was a drastic exception). Most trailers I've seen are built for pavement and decorated to please suburban housewives. This really bugs me because furnishings break, screws pull out of thin veneer walls, etc. They just don't make them rugged enough for hunting use. In spite of these drawbacks, I'll continue to use the trailer whenever I can and use a simple nylon tent when the going is too rough for the trailer.

When the trailer can be towed to the cold weather hunting site, it works pretty well and you don't have to worry about snow caving in the roof. If the trailer can't get there, then we still have the problem and we should choose one of the options suggested in your posts. Several years ago, I saw an ideal setup using a trailer. The trailer had a canvas awning and the guy had rigged up vertical walls and attached them to the awning on three sides. The trailer made up the fourth side. The setup looked pretty rugged with the heavy supporting poles he used. The awning structure created sort of an anteroom where hunters could sit in camp chairs, store wet gear and leave other stuff outside before stepping into the trailer. This would also be a good place to have a propane heater.

Enjoy hearing all your ideas,

270man