I haven't seen this discussed so I feel little embarrassed asking... but, does anyone else have trouble getting into their tent in the backcountry. I think the issue comes up for me because in the Sierra's the ground is pretty dusty, so I don't want to kneel in the dirt before getting into my tent. My tent is a Kelty Ridge 2 (not the Trail Ridge). It kind of looks like a knock-off MSR Hubba Hubba and when I get a nice tight pitch the door height is lowered enough that I can't stoop low enough to get in while on both feet. There are any number of reasonable solutions... but it has me wondering why no one else is complaining about it. I figure the reason is on of: 1) My tent has a lower door than most out there, 2) The problem arises do to my rotund physique and other, more svelte, people have no problem ducking in, or 3) Other people don't mind getting a little dirt/dust into their tent.

I think I will start carrying with me a small piece of tyvek or similar type plastic or a couple of sections of a z-lite that could double as a sit pad. I am wondering does anyone else have this issue and how do you get around it?

"Svelte" is way far in the rear view mirror for me, too. However, I've not had any particular problem getting in. My tent is side opening, so I squat, beside the tent, and sit with my bottom just inside the door, then swing my feet in. It helps that the vestibule zipper splits it right down the middle, so I can roll it completely out of the way. (I got rid of an original Copper Spur because the vestibule unzipped on one edge, near the tent wall, which made getting in and out very awkward. I don't like the new version of the Hubba for the same reason, and bought a last-season model, with the split vestibule, before they vanished.) In the rain, you just have to do the best you can as you enter through the vestibule.

I usually manage to get in without bringing too much dirt with me. I'm definitely not svelte, either, more in the short and stout category! I try to camp well away from "established" sites whenever possible, though, which makes for less of a problem since the ground hasn't been disturbed (usually pine needles). A side-opening tent is easier to get into and out of, though, as it makes kneeling unnecessary.

A piece of plastic as a "doormat" is a good idea, and I've used either that or a piece of 1/8" closed cell foam, especially when grandkids are along.

I meant to say something about the doormat, but forgot (I usually use an empty stuff sack or even my pack cover.) That does make it easier to get in if there's dirt or mud in front of the door (though I also try to get away a bit, where I've got some grass or vegetation (even dead leaves) between me and the muck.)

However, the good part for me is that, when I'm getting out of the tent, I've got something to put my stocking feet on while I put on my shoes.

hmmmm.... perhaps it is a combination of all three. My tent is side opening. The rainfly splits down the middle, though one side has to be staked out to give the tent a good pitch. If the rainfly isn't staked out, I can get in without a problem. When I stake it down the cross bar bends down too low for me to stoop in. It has happened several time where I try to get in and the door catches on the top of my shoulders and I nearly bowl over the tent. Its usually good for some laughs for whoever I am with.

Hell yeah. I think this is one of the downsides of almost all lightweight backpacking tents.

When the priority of design focuses on stability in windy conditions the first thing you do is lower the profile and that comes with some costs, like ease of getting in and out.

If you camp often in windy conditions the trade off is probably worth it. If you don't it's not easy to find a light tent that didn't focus on that in its design stage, so our options dwindle when looking for other features, like ease of entry.

This is one of the reasons I love the Baker's Tent design. Mine, made of plastic, is pretty light, and the design is focused on being used with a campfire, but one made of cuban fiber that was designed for ease of entry (taller than mine) could be pretty damn sweet in my opinion.

I've recently switched to pyramid style tents, no floor so I don't worry about dirt, large door opening, and good head space makes it a ton easier to get in and out.

It is never easy, but we have a two part solution. One part is that we take our shoes off outside the tent...and then stand on them while we kneel to get into the tent.

And we need on our seat cushions--6x16 inch pieces of closed cell foam that we use for sitting on rocks, etc.

If we were less svelte, we might not need the seats!

So our feet are on the shoes, and our knees are on the seatpads...and then we crawl in.

You gotta undo the rainfly first! Been there, done that.

Hmmmm... I don't think we are understanding each other. This is my tent:

http://www.trailspace.com/gear/kelty/ridge-2/

I completely unzip my rainfly and pull it out of the way. The way the rainfly is made, one side of the vestibule gets staked down and the other side then becomes the door when unzipped. It is somewhat arbitrary which side gets staked down though since the vestibule is symmetrical. On the picture in the link I usually set it up to enter on the right based on how the door in the tent body is shaped.

If I remove the stake for the vestibule, I can get in the tent without a problem (because staking the vestibule pulls down the support for the door and effectively lowers the height of the door). I cannot stake out the vestibule from inside the tent.

I feel pretty confident I am doing it correctly but if you still think I am missing something please keep trying to mash it into my brain.

Your brain isn't mashed; I'm just thinking a different kind of tent! My experience is with the Tarptent Squall, Rainshadow, Tarptent/GG Squall Classic, all front-opening tents. My side opening tents have been the SMD Lunar Solo (really easy to get into and out of) and currently the ZPacks Hexamid Twin, less easy but can push the vestibule back to the top of the door.

With all these except the ZPacks, there's a center front guyline that stays put while the vestibule opens in the middle with zipper or (older Tarptent models) velcro. With the ZPacks Hexamid, the "beak" (vestibule) is fastened to the front guyline but it's easy to undo a fastener from either inside or outside that allows the beak to be pushed to the top of the door. I wouldn't want a tent in which the vestibule couldn't be opened without messing with stakes.

It might be worth your while to look for a more convenient tent? You might even find one that's both more convenient to get into and out of and lighter weight!

Not having used your tent, I can't tell you that you're doing it wrong. However, you might experiment a little bit, and try not pulling the vestibule out so far that it warps the door as you describe. If it's set up like mine, there's also a guy out (or at least a loop for one) on the back wall of the fly, opposite the door. Guy that a bit more tautly, and the need to really crank on the vestibule may lessen.

Like I say, not having used your tent, I don't know if this is feasible, but if it is you might play a little.

First, I admit that I am on the small side. However I have had tents (like the micro-zoid) equally small so had proportional entry and exit restriction.

We all seem to do some kind of conditioning to stay in shape- bicycle rides, running, weight lifting, etc. What is often forgotten is agility training (flexibility and balance). I try to keep my agility training fun. Indoor rock climbing is my favorite. Yoga, dance and other fun activities help too. Even every day activities help- gardening (squatting), scrubbing floors, caring for a little "rug rat" or toddler (lots of play with the grandkids!). As you build muscle, you have to counteract with some kind of flexibility exercise. The older I get, the more important flexibility and balance has become (and the harder I have to work on it!)

Taking off some girth also helps- both with walking and living on the ground. Although I know several rather chunky people who are surprisingly flexible.

One advantage of longer backpack trips, is that living on the ground and getting in and out of a small tent gets easier each day, so that the end of the trip, it is no problem. Since I get up and pee at night once or twice, I get extra practice! I suppose you could live on the floor in your house a few weeks before backpacking - remove all chairs!

Sometimes I will place a medium size rock where I can push on it with my hand when I get out of the tent. I also put my trekking poles on the side of the tent and can use them if needed. I too use a sit-pad as a kneeling pad when I get in the tent.

If I were tall I probably would use the tepee style tents.