Best crag bag and rope bag combo

Hey just looking for any recommendations on a crag bag that had a rope bag in it, or is it just better to get a crag bag and put a rope bag inside of it.

A tarp is the best rope bag. Either that or an IKEA bag. I'm fond of the Trango tarp. My partner has one I believe is made by Mammut that's really nice as well; it's much smaller, but it has a cinch cord around the perimeter and handles so you can move the rope around easier.

The Mountain Hardwear Crag Wagon comes with a tarp and is an excellent bag, especially when it comes to durability and the built-in guidebook pocket.

Ikea bag + a crag pack that is big enough to just drop the rope inside with no extra fuss.  I like the BD Creek 50, but at this point most brands have a good option.

Adam Fleming wrote:

A tarp is the best rope bag. Either that or an IKEA bag. I'm fond of the Trango tarp....

Agreed. The Trango Cord Trapper is a fantastic big tarp, can be burritoed with its own built-in strap, and doesn't have any extra unnecesasary bulk. Pair it with whatever crag bag fits your needs in terms of extra space and other features.

Black contractor bag. Doubles as a tarp and storage!

I recently got the wild-country rope bag and am digging it - it's hardly heavier than my other tarp/bag (Burrito) - but it has minimal backpack straps that can be handy in a random scramble where you might be leaving your main crag pack.

Also, love my Neon Shuttle as my main bag. It's simple, and consistently available for $50 / 50% off .... wide mouth, good rigidity, can swallow a decent amount of stuff for cragging without too much care being taken while packing it up.

The nice thing about a rope bag is you can give it to your partner if you're carrying all the gear. It allows more options to split up the weight. You can put the rack on a sling but that's usually not as comfortable as a rope bag with a nice shoulder strap. 

Andy Forquer wrote:

I recently got the wild-country rope bag and am digging it - it's hardly heavier than my other tarp/bag (Burrito) - but it has minimal backpack straps that can be handy in a random scramble where you might be leaving your main crag pack.

I actually just bought the Stamina bag from WC and love it so far. Comes with a rope tarp as well (not integrated, but separate from the bag). 

Dmm classic rope bag

Sam Oudekerk wrote:

Dmm classic rope bag

Came here to say this ^. Comfy pack, plenty of room for a 70m + double rack, shoes and helmet on outside. Built in tarp, and a little zippered pocket for keys/wallet/secretweedstash

Metolius Rope Master HC is great. You can really cinch the bag down around the rope so it fits into a backpack. Also has a nice handle to get it out and a sling for easy moving between climbs at the same crag. Tarp is huge. Highly recommend.

I'm working on making my own rope bag that functions better than current rope bags on the market. its designed so the rope doesn't fall off the tarp when moving it around and  you can move it around the crag easily. check it out: Unbound Equipment there are some videos I just posted. I haven't made a site yet but its the start of hopefully a new brand! any feedback or recommendations are welcome! ill be posting some more videos about the features and specs soon

Simple rope tarp in your chosen crag bag.

Those IKEA bags turn to plastic yarn/dust after UV exposure. Please use something a bit more durable. 

I generally don’t like rope bags; a tarp is always sufficient for me. I recently got a MH Cragwagon and I absolutely love it. It comes in three sizes and all of them come with a rope tarp.

I keep them separate and let each thing be its best. 

Easy one for me. If I need to hike for a while with the rope (and can't fit the bag into my general crag pack), the DMM classic rope bag is superior. Several carrying options, great compression, quality, tarp size. Great all-around bag. 

If it's a sport crag and is close/hike is easy enough, though, nothing beats the Edelrid Caddy II. Its system of integrating the bag into the center of the tarp makes containing and moving the rope around at the belay stance - and from route to route - the best I've ever used. It's incredibly convenient and works great - I own several and love it so much. Only downside is that it only has one carry strap and it's a bit of a pain to carry for a while - especially compared to something like the DMM classic.

For crag packs, I rotate among my three favorites - the North Face Cragaconda (no longer made) when I want a slightly smaller clamshell, the Black Diamond Crag Pack (a classic!) when I'd like something that stands on its own or the Mystery Ranch Tower when I want the largest capacity clamshell.

Heywood L wrote:

I'm working on making my own rope bag that functions better than current rope bags on the market. its designed so the rope doesn't fall off the tarp when moving it around and  you can move it around the crag easily. check it out: Unbound Equipment there are some videos I just posted. I haven't made a site yet but its the start of hopefully a new brand! any feedback or recommendations are welcome! ill be posting some more videos about the features and specs soon

Heywood, your rope bag looks interesting! How far along are you in the development process? From what it looks like, the tarp itself is quite small, and the rope you roll into it also looks no longer than 40m, does it have the capacity for longer ropes?

I've been using the Osprey Mutant 38 and an Edelrid liner rope bag. The pack itself has nice rope carrying straps and lots of places to attach stuff. I'm usually just single pitch climbing so I'll keep my rope in the edelrid bag because it has a tarp and makes it easier to move to different routes. If I'm going on a longer approach I'll put the rope on my pack and stuff the bag/tarpinto the pack, and if going on a mountain I'll just ditch the rope bag. 

pic not mine

+1 to the MH crag wagon. Really well designed, can fit a ton of gear and access it all easily.

I've been using a ropemaster hc with an old 70L osprey pack. The bag is super durable but bulky and takes up most of the 70L pack. 

Thinking about switching to a tarp and cragsmith combo. I really like the way it opens up without having to dig through a mess of gear. Only down side is no way to easily pass the rope bag to the new kid on the approach. 

The cheapest tarp is to get on amazon and search "beach tarp" sub $10 for a ~5ftx5ft. They have little stake tabs on the corner that you can tie rope off too.  I used mine with the BD creek 50, it's probably TOO big, but the 35 is probably too small.

Looking for a compact rope bag? Have you looked at the BD Half Rope Burrito? It can actually fit full-sized ropes and packs down compact.