I wouldn't worry too much about film degradation, I spent 4 and a half months travelling round the world using film which I didn't get developed until I got back. no x-ray damage either! Rolls of film don't really take up too much weight and space compared to heavy DSLR's with all their cables, batteries and associated paraphernalia.

With film the camera doesn't have much bearing on the quality of the picture. but with a half decent lens, slow speed film and good technique it's easy to get A3 quality prints.

If you're just looking at getting scans of your pictures for the web many "household" flat bed scanners will give good enough quality.

as for getting the moody landscapes etc. get down your local library, they'll at least have a few books on photography techniques. Landscapes photography doesn't need mountains of expensive equipment, just a few filters and a tripod, the rest is down to understanding composition etc.