This past weekend, I rode the Virginia Capital Trail from Richmond to Williamsburg and back. Beautiful trail and nice places to eat along the way. Camped at Chickahominy Riverfront Park, expecting the temperature to drop to around freezing. Ordered $20 electric heater off Amazon that puts out around 500 watts, having no idea whether it would help. Glad to report that it worked out great, keeping me very comfortable all night. There was almost no wind, so I expect it wouldn’t be as good if there was any kind of breeze. I was a little concerned about igniting the tent or my sleeping bag, so the heater sat in the tent vestibule with nothing around it, blowing air into the tent. It also has a very sensitive cutoff switch if it tips at all, so it seemed safe enough. The heater weighs around 1.5 pounds and is not very large, which makes it OK for this kind of trip.

It’s a ceramic heater with a fan. Very quiet. The metal on the front gets hot, but the rest is cool to the touch. Obviously you need electricity to run it, but as long as you can find power, it makes cold weather camping quite pleasant. I also has a good campfire going for three hours prior to that, so a very comfortable night overall. A 4-season sleeping bag would be more versatile, but a lot more expensive and wouldn’t get used much.

I've used one of those when "base camping". Now I'm wondering what the lightest heating pad weighs? That might be a little less fussy than hot rocks in sox as a bed warmer.

$20 is a lot less than even the cheapest 4-season tent and sleeping bag. I rarely tour when it’s that cold at night, so investing in expensive gear is just not worth it. My 3-season bag and a fleece blanket, plus the heater made for a very comfortable night. I have an inflatable pad, but that doesn’t do much when surrounding air is cold, and I don’t really enjoy nature that much when I’m asleep. Getting a good night’s rest is important for enjoying nature during the day. Anyway, it was just an experiment that went well. Not something I plan to do on a regular basis. Most places I camp don’t have power, and most of my touring is in warmer months.

Right. You cannot take a hot shower, get a room for the night, eat at a restaurant, stay at a campground or ride on paved roads or paths. Those are all modern conveniences that not part of fully experiencing nature.

It it works than why not? How did you get the power to the heater? Extension cord or did you pitch near a socket?

The tent was setup near the campsite power outlets, and I also used a six-foot extension cord. The extension cord goes on all trips to charge electronics in the tent at night with a multiport USB charger.