Small bike packing - fitting everything in... Help!

I have a specialised diverge in a 49 and I'm in the process of working out a better bike packing setup.

I like to travel light but I'm not a total minimalist. With my small frame it's a little tricky.

Currently I have:

• Rolled dry bag voile strapped between handlebars
  
• 2 x 3L fork packs
  
• 11L saddle pack
  
  
  
  

Issues:

• The handlebar situation is doable but a bit annoying to assemble, and also prone to cable strangling when strapping tight enough to clear the wheel. I don't know if there is a bag I could use between the bars that would give me enough capacity to even bother. The distance between the bars is ~30cm but I reckon max 25cm for a bag to not interfere with the shifters etc. Current solution is just to not put too much in it and not strap it too tight.
  
• Very little clearance above the rear tyre. Packing the back well, and with less helps here.
  
  

Ideas:

• Custom frame bag and water bladder (no room for bottles too except one under the down tube) . Would allow me to carry less in the other areas.
  
• Front rack to support whatever is up there. Might not be necessary if I find the right bag or stick with the dry bag.
  
  

Any other small framed owners out there will similar experiences or advice?

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Camel pack instead of the bottles then get a frame bag?

https://www.bike24.com/p2752049.html
This would add storage on rear triangle. I’ve fitted mine and it’s solid. I’ve only done a couple of test rides to date but it seems good enough.
It would provide a barrier between saddlebag and tyre too.

I spy eyelets, rear rack and Ortlieb gravel panniers will give you 25L. It won't be that much heavier with the right rack, like a Tubus Vegas Evo.

The trick there (from personal experience) is to be really strict on not over loading that rack and ending up with a touring setup…

Indeed, personally think the 12.5L Ortliebs are spot on, and have used them with a bike that doesn't ride well with much on the front.

Now also have the 10L Tailfins for MTB bikepacking. Bit more secure and lighter, pack all the essentials easily and might be preferable if weight is a concern.

The adventure rack looks great too.

Noone needs to ride with moar than one bidon

Lots of images I’ve seen if bikepacking on smaller frame sizes go down the rack route, as there’s just not enough clear air between saddle/tyre or in the frame for anything meaningful. There’s some pretty lightweight racks around, tubus fly (or similar) or the ortlieb qr rack mentioned would be what I’d look at first, then strap a dry bag to the top rather than panniers.

I’m sure bikepacking.com had a feature on bikepacking with a small frame, might be worth a search as there usually pretty good inspo

To me it looks like you have a lot of stuff but depends on the trip . . . .

Pretty sure one of the otp revelate frame bags would fit in there nicely. Perhaps there’s a way of doing a diy top tube bottle cage if you want to keep more than one bottle?

Aeroe type racks with either panniers or a bag on top seem to be the popular choice here for small frames

Lots of ideas here: https://bikepacking.com/plan/bikepacking-guide-for-shorter-riders/
As mentioned by others, a lightweight rear rack with a drybag strapped to the top seems to be a popular option. I tend to have either a small rucksack or large hip pack for stuff I'm likely to want access to during the day. As you've already noted, packing the main bags well in the first place can make a big difference, and unpacking/repacking during the day can be a proper faff.
FWIW, your current set up looks pretty neat.

You could use a stem bag for another bidon and lose the inner frame bottle cages, which would free up space for a frame bag.

Adding to the last comment, if you get two of these for your bidons, you'll then have space for a frame bag.

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/fabric-handlebar-bottle-cage/_/R-p-168751?mc=8487122&c=black

When I've tried adding stem bags to drop bars, my knees hit the bags when I stand up out of the saddle.
I have had success with one of these: https://velotastic.co.uk/product/brands/king-cage/king-cage-top-cap-cage-mount/

A different route…

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Could you swap to an Alpkit rear and utilise this to help with the clearance issues?

https://alpkit.com/products/exo-rail-seat-pack-mounting-system?variant=31072155664489

The answer is always take less stuff. Plan a stop off at the post office on the second or third day of your trip and post the excess home.

The first sentence is good, the second is serial killer behaviour

I have these, they're not fancy looking or artisan made, but they're pretty good vfm

I have similar sized bike but I've never done more than 1 night away so I don't think I'm qualified to give a proper multi-night bike packing opinion.

I also bungee cord a dry bag to my handlebars so I'm not sure you want my opinion.

With those fork bags you're already massively up on storage compared to me.

With that sloping top tube, but sure how much extra space you're really getting by switching to a frame bag and stem bags for bottles.

Got one at the weekend and it works a treat.

I'm coming from 50-53cm bikes as a 5"6 guy - put in my hardtail vs gravel mode (note strapped on a bag in front of the handlebar roll)

So for the handlebars - easy option is a burrito bag, a better option is to put on TT bars and a restrap holster or equivalent, and if sticking to Rando style bags I'd personally run a Pelago basket and 3rd party basket bag
I'd add a top tube bag also, long version if you dont need the stepover clearance from coming off the saddle too often
Adding to the cockpit, bigggg dual stem bags (the MVP of bags)

If you're getting saddlebag rub - I'd prioritise a rear rack and run a top dry bag plus side panniers - it'll eliminate rub but with the small frame size you'll still get limitations on how much you can fit toploaded, so even consider a splurge for a Tailfin if you can
On the current bag though, I think there's aftermarket saddle rail cages that hold 2x bidons

As for a custom frame bag, depends how long you aim to keep the frame going for. If a good 5000km plus then personally yeah I'd bite the bullet - but maybe see if you can order a whole load of off-the-peg versions from Apidura, Salsa, etc and see if any ends up fitting well enough?

final rogue idea - looks like you could strap a 1.7L tailfin down tube pack... on the front of your seatpost

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I've got a Diverge (albeit 56) and had similar thoughts on how to go touring without panniers. In the end I've opted for custom Alpkit framebag with bladder (not arrived yet) in conjunction with seatpack and if gear doesn't fit in space, I'll add in Ortlieb fork bags.

Obviously I've got a larger frame so there's a bit more space for framebag but not sure if it'll fit my bivvy bag and other stuff - on a gravel bike q factor is a bit narrower so you've got a bit less room to play with than on a mountain bike.

Kinda stole @Chaley 's idea but looks like you have access to a bin there in that pic. You could simply fashion some supports and have yourself whole load of space: