Pulling onto a hilltop, the desert view opens for miles north and east of us, where a midday haze hangs behind layers of rolling hills reaching for the sky next to their saguaro cactus cohabitants. We’re nine miles into a 110-mile loop of central Arizona bliss. We couldn’t have found a more beautiful location to patch the burnt and leaking coolant hose on a Beta 430RR. Fortunately, the necessary fixes came from my Wolfman Enduro Daytripper Saddlebags also loaded with tire change equipment, first aid kit, toolkit and snacks. Meanwhile, I had my cell phone and auxiliary battery in the Enduro Pocket to keep them out of the dust but ready when needed.

On previous day rides, I’d strap a toolkit to the tail of my Honda XR650L, and sometimes my camera box sat back there too. In my backpack I usually only brought water and a first aid kit. However, in the Arizona desert, with rockier terrain and fewer resources than the sandy Michigan forests, I needed a better way to carry equipment.

I can’t stand tank bags on off-road bikes. That’s why I was drawn to the Enduro Pocket. It looked small enough to stay out of my way and perfect for a cell phone, wallet and more snacks. Immediately, my assumption was reassured. The zippers never hang, the opening provides easy access, it’s shockingly dust-resistant, and I never noticed it while standing.

A non-slip, anti-scratch backing material keep it in place wherever you strap it down. This little bag deserves a place on every dual-sport or enduro bike I ever own—it’s like a having a center console in a car except it’s not hard plastic and you’re not in a car, which makes it all even better.

Toolkit, front tube, tire levers, pump, patch kit, first aid kit and bonus snacks all found a comfortable home in the Daytripper bags with room to spare. My camera box on the rear, Enduro Pocket on the tank, and a light hydration backpack completed the load. Surprisingly, we ended up using every single piece of my setup during the five-day desert ride. Between half-inch holes in TUbliss tires under a chilly full moon, to a burnt radiator hose, to enjoyable bonus snacks, the added weight strapped to my XR went largely unnoticed. I attribute this weight-handling ability to the zig-zagging compression strap that keeps each bag as tight and compact as possible.

The Daytripper bags snug down securely with straps to the lower frame/footpeg area, meet with two beefy straps across the saddle, and are tied back with rubberized metal hooks to the rear fender. Any light- or midweight dual-sport or enduro should easily handle these bags. I keep mine pretty far forward to reduce the effective weight on the bikes rear end. For capacity, the range of adjustment for the compression straps makes it easy to run these bags almost empty or stuffed to the brim. If you’re picky about scuffing plastics you might want a protective layer between the bags and bike. The anti-slip anti-scuff coating on the bags won’t scratch anything, but if dirt gets between the surfaces there might be abrasion.

These bags are meant for day rides out of a base camp or hopping from hotel to hotel, where you won’t be carrying a bulky sleep system on the bike. The Enduro Pocket provides a safe spot for small items and the Daytripper bags keep chunky tools off your body, making our already versatile machines even more practical.

MSRP: Enduro Pocket $64.99 | Enduro Daytripper Saddlebags $184.99 WolfmanLuggage.com

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