Nice bikepacking rig. Seeing it and the scenery tempts me to get off road more than I do.; on 25mm tires I'm pretty much restricted to well groomed trails. I'm sure regular bike tourists are going to be using more bikepacking luggage in the future. However, the handlbar bags/rolls can be difficult to use with drop bars and I'll never take to using a backpack for anything other than emergencies like needing somewhere to carry that 6 pack.
Thanks...the Surly Krampus has proven to be a great touring rig...
I've pretty much completely switched up to mountain bike touring. On a tour this summer I followed a totally mellow road for a day to connect up a dirt loop and although this was a great paved bike touring road I just couldn't wait to get back on dirt. The almost complete lack of cars and other people makes touring dirt so much more peaceful and what you lose in access to services you gain in exploring amazing places you have all to yourself.
You are right that the typical bikepacking handlebar bag isn't ideal for drop bars, but people use them just stuffed less full so they sit between the drops.
I would have said the same thing about wearing backpacks on tour a few years ago, but I am totally comfortable with them now. I keep the heavy items on my bike including water and tools. Usually my pack contains food and gets lighter everyday on tour. Since I ride where things are rough I rarely sit for hours at a time which eliminates back/saddle issues and hike-a-bike is a normal part of my day and wearing a backpack makes the bike easier to push and carry.
Since I wear "normal" shoes and use flat pedals I can transition from bike tourist to hiker pretty seamlessly if I want to explore on foot and a backpack is handy for that.
BTW -
Scott at Porcelain Rocket [made my bags] does full custom work so you can get a front bag made to work specifically with drop bars or have any other modifications made you would like.
I've also used hybrid luggage systems with racks and panniers + soft frame/bar bags. You can mix and match to get the best setup for a specific tour.
What I like most about these softbags is not so much the lightweight [which is nice] it's that I can ride my mountain bike as if it was a mountain bike on rough terrain without having to think about breaking a rack or damaging a pannier mount. That puts a big smile on my face.
