Our 3 Favorite Bedrock Bags Bikepacking Bags, Where To Put & How to Pack Them

Meet Thad Ferrell, Head Guide at Four Corners Guides

Hi, I’m Thad Farrell, one of the head guides at Four Corners Guides and owner of Kingfisher Fly Guides. And I’m going to be unboxing some of the new product that we’re hosting from Bedrock Bags. This is the second part of the series from our unboxing, brought to you by The Bikeraft Guide.

Today we’re going to be looking at some of the great products from Bedrock Bags. These are made by some of our friends at a local Durango company. I’ve been using these bags personally and now professionally for years. They’ve been on my bikes for a long time. Some of these designs are great.

Tapeets Handlebar Bags

These guys use their stuff as do we and they love it. So first product we’re highlighting is the Tapeet’s handlebar stash bag. We’ll go into where you put those later. Always best in pairs. Love these guys. They’re super useful and great for a variety of smaller items, whether it be water bottles, a big Nalgene can fit in there pretty easily in a thirty-two ounce full beer. And then small sundry items, tools, straws. We love our drinking straws. Great stuff.

Custom Frame Bags

The next one we’re going to look at are custom frame bags. This is obviously for a very, very small bike frame. But they make them can for all the way up to a large frames as well, like the big old Ghost Grappler there. Pretty large frame.

I’d like a custom brown trout frame bag, please.

Coconino Seat Bag

The next one is the Coconino Seat Bag. The Coconino is probably one of my favorites. And with a really awesome seat rail interface that really sucks up that load and reduces wag on technical single track. Awesome stuff.

No one likes the wag except the dogs, you know when they wag.

Next up. We’re going to put some of these things in the bag and give you some ideas of where to put, how these bags go on and really how easy they are. Really user-friendly. So one of the biggest questions I get, and most people who’ve been bike bikepacking for a number of years is where does it all go?

Where Does It All Go?

Like a teenager with food, where does it all go? Right? With backpacking is pretty easy. It just goes into the sack. With Bikepacking, it’s a little different… if not quite a bit different.

Water in the Frame Bag

So one of the most important things with Bikepacking is the frame bag. And the frame bag is great because especially if you have a larger frame. Then  you can really get a lot of heavy items in there. And one of the heaviest items you’re going to be carrying, especially in the desert Southwest, is water. Get as much water as you can in the frame. It keeps that water low center of gravity. The last place you really want to put that is on the back of the bike or on the front of the bike. Front of the bike is probably pretty obvious because that’s really going to affect your handling.

And as anyone knows who’s carried a ton of water, it is one of the hardest things to carry. So put as much in the frame bag as you can. And you’re going to be well ahead of the game.

Breaking Up The Gear From Front to Back

Moving on. Where you put everything on your bike is going to depend on what you’re doing and how long you’re out for. Let’s say I have a four-day course on Lake Powell. And I’m going to be doing quite a bit of paddling. The ride out of Powell is pretty legit ride out of Blue Notch. So the last thing I want is to add anything on my back.

A Bit About Bedrock’s Panniers (We Like These, Too)

So for the Powell trip, I’ve chosen the Bedrock Panniers, which I’ve used for a number of years. They are a great game changer. These are lightweight, water resistant and extremely durable. That’s where my sleeping bag, sleeping pad is going to go. My food and extra clothing and my boat is going to be up front.

Where to Stuff & What to Pack in Each Bag (04:42):

These are super handy right next to one another. And they guys can hold a surprising amount of stuff: tools and snacks, anything that you need during the day at the ready. It’s an indispensable little bags there.

My frame bag would obviously be really big. And I’d have all my water here. Then in a separate compartment I’d have a little ditty bag for my tools, my pump.

We’ll take it back a notch and we’ll talk about Coconino Seat Post bag for fixed posts The Black Dragon is Bedrock Bag’s model for their dropper post specific.

Both seat bags are going to use this really awesome interface for your seat rails. It allows the bag to get really up and tight to your seat and reduces the wag. It almost almost eliminates the wag.

What to Put Where in the Seat Bag? (05:56)

Think heavier items more towards the center of the post. Wider items to the back. So what I like to do is put my little small cook kit with my two pots in the back. That’s a pretty bulky item that’s going to go right here. Usually fits great. And then I can start filling the voids with smaller clothing, socks, whatever I have. And then sleeping bag in the back. That’s usually a pretty effective way to do it. And that’s going to vary. It’s going to be completely subjective to the gear that you have and the bag that you’re putting into. And that’s going to be, of course, with our boat on the front. Awesome setup.