5 Expert Tips for Dialing in Your Bikepacking Setup

1. Focus on the big 3

If you’ve been looking at different bikepacking setups and systems, you’ve probably seen the big three:

• A seat post bag
• A frame bag
• A handlebar roll

These three bags are the bread and butter of your bikepacking system because they can carry the most gear. Also, when packed correctly, they allow you to spead out the weight across the length of your bike.

Seat post bag

Seat post bags attach to your seat post and extend out over your rear tire. They can range in size from just a few liters to over 10 L.

Here are a few considerations when choosing your seat post bag:

Frame bag

Frame bags fit within the main triangle of your bike. The problem is, no two bikes will have the exact same frame triangle dimensions.

You can buy ‘universal’ frame bags that are designed to ‘generally’ fit ‘most’ bikes, but if you plan on doing a lot of bikepacking I recommend investing in a custom-made frame bag that is specific to your bike’s dimensions.

If you’re crafty, you can also go the DIY route and make your own frame bag.

Handlebar roll

Handlebar rolls attach to your handlebars and are a great place to pack lightweight items like your tent and sleeping bag.

Like seat post bags, handlebar rolls can be fixed to your bike or you can get a harness-style system that allows you to remove the dry bag from the bike.

Keep reading to see which system I prefer 🙂

2. Harnesses are the way

The first set of bikepacking bags I owned were fixed bags, meaning the handlebar roll and the seat post bag were fully attached to the bike. This is how most bikepacking bags were designed until a few years ago when harness-style systems came out.

After using both systems, I definitely prefer harnesses over fixed bags. Harnesses allow you to remove your dry bags from the bike without taking the whole thing off.

Harnesses make it so much easier to pack and unpack your gear and allow you to customize your system based on what kind of trip you’re doing, which brings me to my next tip…

3. Think modular

As much as I’d love for there to be one bikepacking setup that works best for all trips, it’s just not the case.

Instead, think of your setup as modular. What you use for an overnight trip will be different than what you use for a multi-day adventure.

For example, I prefer to use my Osprey Mira backpack for short singletrack-focused trips so I can keep my bike light and nimble.

On the other hand, if I’m doing a multi-day bikepacking trip with long days in the saddle, I’ll try to carry as much of my gear in bags attached to the frame.

In short, don’t try to dial in the one perfect bikepacking system. Instead, view your gear as modular and change your setup based on the trip you’ll be doing.

4. Everything should have a place & a purpose

It’s easy to overpack. When I biked across Washington, I carried a pound of nuts the entire way without even opening it (and then raccoons got into them last night…)

You may be tempted to pack more than you need because you have the space, but believe me, pedaling a 70 lb bike isn’t easy!

Everything you pack should have its own place for organization and a well-defined purpose. Plan out your meals and water so you don’t carry excess food and ditch the “I might need this” items.

Of course, if you’re just starting out you may not know what you might need or what is important. Head over to my bikpacking gear list post for a checklist on what to pack.

5. Don’t overthink it

Lastly, don’t overthink your bikepacking setup. It can be paralyzing to try to get everything just right and it can even keep you from setting out on your first bikepacking trip altogether.

Your first few adventures probably won’t go as smoothly as you’d like, but once you get a feel for what gear you need and how you want to load your bike, it will get easier.

Bikepacking Setup Examples

There are a lot of ways bikepackers can set up their bikes. Here are five examples based on the type of trip, budget, and style of bike.

The Budget Bikepacking Setup

If you’re looking for a budget bikepacking setup, you’re in luck. You actually don’t need to go out and buy hundreds of dollars of gear when you’re just getting started with bikepacking.

You can do a lot with voile straps and dry bags.

That being said, a budget bikepacking setup can only take you so far. If you do find that you really enjoy it and want to continue doing overnight adventures, you will want to eventually upgrade to more customized and bikepacking-specific gear.

Here’s a sample budget bikepacking setup:

The Versatile Bikepacking Setup

If versatility is your main goal for a bikepacking setup, check out the Aeroe bikepacking system.

I haven’t tried these racks and bags myself, but they look really interesting and really functional.

The Spider Rear Rack can carry up to three cradles for three different dry bag mounting options. Only going out on a short trip? Use one cradle. Need to carry more gear? Fix two more cradles onto the sides of the rack. It’s a clever system that would work well for a lot of different adventures from singletrack trips to backroad gravel grinders.

Aeroe also has a handlebar cradle that allows you to attach a dry bag up front.

Aeroe definitely isn’t the cheapest option (if you got the full setup with racks, cradles, and bags, it would be over $600), but you can use your own dry bags and start with just one or two cradles at first.

The Mountain Biker Bikepacking Setup

This is me! I’m a mountain biker at heart, so singletrack and rugged bikepacking trips are what I gravitate toward.

This means I want my bikepacking setup to be lightweight and minimal and allows me to maneuver my bike down fast, narrow, and sometimes technical trails.

The best bikepacking setup I’ve found is Rogue Panda. I have their frame bag, handlebar roll, and seat post bag – all of which are meticulously designed to be highly durable, stable, and functional.

In addition to these ‘big three’ – the seat post bag, handlebar roll, and frame bag – you can add additional bikepacking bags depending on how long your trip is and how much gear you need to carry.

Additional bags/cages you could include are:

• A top tube bag (great for phone, multi-tool, chain lube, etc…)
• Fork cages for water bottles
• A feed bag for easy-to-reach snacks

The Long-Distance or Really Off-Grid Bikepacking Setup

If you’re heading out on a really long-distance backcountry and off-grid bikepacking trip, you’ll probably need to carry more gear, which means you need a way to carry more gear.

You’ll still want to focus on the big three (handlebar roll, seat post bag, and frame bag), but also consider adding a rear rack.

Rear racks definitely have their pros and cons:

I recommend only adding a rear rack if you really need to or you plan on taking your time and going slow.

Old Man Mountain Racks are great because they are extremely versatile (they can be used as front racks, too) and they’re designed to work with virtually any bike – full-suspension, gravel, road, and even fat bikes.

If your bike doesn’t have eyelet mounts for bike racks, you can get a fit kit that is specifically designed for your bike brand and model.

Old Man Mountain Racks are also designed to work with a variety of panniers.

The Drop Bar Gravel Bikepacking Set Up

If you plan on doing mostly gravel riding, you’ll probably want a drop bar bike. Drop bars give you more hand positions to keep you comfortable on longer rides and they give you a slight aerodynamic advantage.

However, drop bars have a considerably shorter length, so you’ll need a handlebar roll/harness that fits.

I don’t have any experience with drop bar bikepacking biking (I’m hoping to soon!) but YouTuber David Arthur has a great video on his “perfect” gravel bikepacking setup (see below).

He still has the big three – a seat post bag, frame bag, and handle bar roll – but the frame bag is smaller to accommodate water bottles and the handlebar roll is shorter to fit within the drop bars.

Personally, I’d probably opt for a full frame bag and carry my water in a hydration pack, but that’s just my personal preference because I need to drink a lot of water.

Final thoughts

It’s important to remember that there is no ‘one’ right bikepacking setup. What works best for you may not work for someone else. It really comes down to personal preference, what bike you have, and what kind of adventures you want to go on.

I recommend not investing a ton of money into high-end bags until you have a few trips under your belt and you start to get a sense of how you want to carry your gear.

Remember, the best gear is the stuff you already have. From there, you can start to add more items to your gear closet as you dial in your set up.

Happy trails!