TESTED: Patagonia Dirt Roamer Pack 20L

Photos: Gerard Lagana

The Dirt Roamer Pack is a 20L mountain bike backpack, aimed for long days riding so you can carry all the essentials you'll need, from water, to a first aid kit, spares, snacks and the clothing required. While 20L may be a bigger bag than you'll opt for when heading out for a quick ride, this size is about where you want to be for a long day in the backcountry when you never know what the weather gods will serve up.

The Dirt Roamer Pack is made with 100% recycled nylon, and it has been built tough for off-road use. The back panel has a raised section with plenty of mesh to increase breathability. Breathable materials are also used on the shoulder straps and generous hip belt, which also house two spacious pockets for anything you may need to grab on the go (like snacks). There's a sternum strap with 5 fixed positions, and a clip and guide for the reservoir tube, that can run on the left or right. The outer has a PFC free durable water repellant finish, and the whole thing is pretty light at about 680g for our test sample.

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Unlike many larger mountain bike backpacks which have a place for everything, the Dirt Roamer Pack has one main pocket (with a key clip), a smaller zippered pocket atop the pack for valuables and the two hip belt pockets. Add in the sleeve for the included 2L roll top reservoir and you have 5 pockets in total. Which is about the same as a small hydration pack. So how would it deal with all the odds and ends of a long ride?

Loading up the Dirt Roamer Pack

I tested the pack across a variety of uses, from bushwalks, to commutes, to long rides. Given the main zip runs down the centre of the bag, you really pack it to have things accessed when it lays flat. It works best when you have a number of bulkier items, like a first aid kit, a jacket and things like spare tubes. The small pocket on the top was good for small items you'll want to grab quickly, like a multitool or car keys. It would also work well for sunglasses or goggles, if you had their soft bag.

There are small compression straps at the top and bottom which really keeps the weight close to your back, and you can use the straps to lash your helmet on the back if you're conscious of leaving it on your bike at a lunch stop, or just for transit to and from your ride. The pack is low profile but it is tall, so it does cover a fair bit of real estate on your back. 

On the trail 

Regardless of whether it was half empty or full, the bag was very stable, helped by the low profile design that keeps weight close to your back. The low profile shape and flat but secure harness does carry weight well. Even when loaded up with 2L of water and a thermos of coffee and gear, the pack stayed nice and stable.

Patagonia use great materials to help aid breathability, but there's still a lot of your back covered, and it makes a difference compared to having no pack so it can get a little warm in really hot weather. But given the amount of gear you can carry comfortably with this bag, there's no reason to compare it to riding packless, as you won't get this much gear on a bike without 2-3 bikepacking bags.

I did find getting bigger snacks out of the main pocket was easiest by full removal of the bag. You can swing it around keeping the waist belt done up, but it depends on what you're looking for in the main compartment. Mountain biking often necessitates lots of small items, and this pack isn't as well equipped to sort them as easily as others.

Our take

The Patagonia Dirt Roamer Pack 20L is a well-featured pack using recycled material and a subtle but considered design. The features lend themselves to long days out on the bike more than weekend warrior use. The harness system is simple but well-executed, letting the pack carry loads with ease, and with minimal impact to the rider thanks to stability.

RRP: $219.95
From: patagonia.com.au

Hits:

• Very comfortable
• Light and high volume
• Stable when fitted
• Uses some recycled materials

Misses:

• Not the easiest for gear sorting