5'4" sleeping in 5' bed?

Any of you short people out there sleep in your 5' bed with the tailgate up?

I'm on the fence between a short and long bed.

I'm only 5'4" tall and camping in the bed was one consideration for the bed length.

I'm going to be camping alone except for the rare occasion when my wife comes along she is only 5'1".

I don't want to have to bother with a tail gate tent.

 

That should be an interesting test drive! I imagine it going down something like this:

Salesman: "it has a tried and true V6 engine with plenty of towing power and has one of the best 4WD systems you can buy. It also comes with all the latest safety features"
You: "Yeah, whatever. Any chance the wife and I can lay down in the back of the bed?"

 

are you planning on keeping the tailgate up? Then you will have to bend some joints in order to sleep properly. Additionally, this would also mean your head to feet is touching edges. If you use a pillow, you usually are a few inches off the top of the pillow. If you keep the tailgate down, i guess you could fit but i wouldn't be able to sleep knowing the tailgate is down and i wouldn't feel securely in.

 

Lay sideways.

 

i am 5"10 and used to sleep in my short bed with the tail gate up. sleeping diagonally (alone) my feet were touching, but was still pretty comfortable. if you are 5'4" i think you will be just fine.

with that being said - if you plan to camp often, that extra foot of the long bed would be nice - both for sleeping and storage purposes.

 

your height doesnt change when laying side ways and you may not want to bend your knees all night long

 

spooning position

 

I would think when you are by yourself you could just lay corner to corner and be fine. With 2 of you it would probably be a bit of a challenge but OK for a night or two.

 

https://www.rei.com/c/tents

 

geometry must not have been your strongest subject.

 

LOL!

 

actually geometry was one of my best strong suits lol but seeing these other options stated, i guess sleeping in the bed is possible, i myself move alot when sleeping so i would def hit my foot on the tailgate often but hey, i say try it once and you will know a process that works for you

 

Yep, diagonally is the way to go. You could probably fit an air mattress between the wheel wells.

 

Definitely following this.

I have an ARE topper on the way (next month-ish) for my short bed 3rd Gen and I’d love to be able to sleep in the bed in order to avoid spending money on a tent, if possible. I’m 5’9.

 

Will you fit diagonally? Yes. Will it be comfortable all night? Not really. It'll work for sure, but its not worth it to me, especially considering all gear needs to be removed from the bed.

Edit: coming from someone with a camper shell/sleep platform

 

I wonder how many times nightly a person person unconsciously stretches out to get comfortable. I’d say you won’t like it.

 

Refresher course.

Remember, OP is only 64"

 

You need a platform. Rest it on the wheel wells. It will gain you four inches or so on both ends of the diagonal and some width if you sleep north-south. I am 6 feet and sleep ok alone diagonally. My wife is indoorsy.......... so I don't have to consider both of us fitting.

 

I brought my camping cot to the dealer to make sure it fit in the bed!

DCLB is what I recommend. I was afraid it would be too long of a truck but I have found it to be much easier to maneuver than I thought. For camping, I put down the back seats and use it for things like the cooler, luggage, etc, ,and reserve the bed for camping gear like stove, etc. Stuff I will be taking out at the campsite.

Edit: I am 5' 8" on a good day. I would hate a short bed if I intended to sleep in it.

 

I’ve done exactly that, with the Tacoma and the last three station wagons I’ve purchased. Salespeople always chuckle.