Saddle Panniers Convert your Riding Saddle into a Pack Saddle

Saddle Panniers give you the ability to use your western riding saddle as a pack saddle. They offer you an easy and inexpensive way to pack in your gear for a summer camp trip or pack out your elk quarters in the fall. Saddle panniers.">Saddle Panniers also allow you to use your pack horse as your riding horse once you have made camp.

We offer two styles of saddle panniers. Our Original TrailMax™ Saddle Panniers are a single unit that fit over the saddle with a pannier on each side. They are lightweight, simple to use and, rolled up, will easily fit behind your saddle, in a saddle bag or in a cantle bag so that you can ride in and walk out with a load.

The TrailMax™ TrailMax™ Pack-A-Saddle is a more versatile version and a much more complete system for packing your riding saddle. Components of the Pack-A-Saddle include: saddle panniers, pannier hanger, PolyPac inserts, a top pack and conversion straps for using the Pack-A-Saddle on a Sawbuck or Decker Pack Saddle. The Saddle Panniers on the Pack-A-Saddle are completely detachable so that they can be packed, weighed and loaded one at a time. Three roller buckles let you adjust pannier ride height. The top pack secures to the saddle with compression straps and has two full length zippers for easy access to gear. The top pack also secures to the Saddle Panniers with webbing and O-rings. Insulated pouches are sewn on the end of the saddle panniers for water bottles, snacks, map, etc.

To use the Pack-A-Saddle on a Sawbuck or Decker Pack Saddle, detach the Panniers from the pannier hanger and attach the conversion straps; one attaches to the front and middle buckles and the second to the middle and rear buckles. If you have a Sawbuck pack saddle, simply loop the straps over the cross bucks as you would any other pannier and adjust the pannier height as needed. If you have a Decker Pack Saddle, you can thread Decker hooks onto the conversion straps or loop the straps through the hoops on your Decker Pack Saddle. The H-Shaped Top Pack will work well with either style of pack saddle.

Our Original TrailMax Saddle Panniers and the TrailMax Pack-A-Saddle are made of heavy-duty, 1000-denier nylon reinforced with one inch wide nylon webbing. The lids on our Original Saddle Panniers are also secured with one inch wide webbing and nickel plated O-rings. The lids on our Pack-A-Saddle are secured with webbing and two side release buckles.

Both the TrailMax Saddle Panniers and Pack-A-Saddle both fit snugly over Western riding saddles. The pannier area measures 24”W x 17”H x 12”D. Our Poly-Pac Inserts, part of the Pack-A-Saddle package, can be purchased separately for the Original Saddle Panniers to provide them with shape and protect your equipment. Both the Original Saddle Panniers and the Pack-A-Saddle are machine washable.

Lastly, when planning to use Saddle Panniers extensively or with an awkward load, we recommend that you use a pack pad or larger saddle pad underneath your western riding saddle. Panniers hang lower on the horse’s body than most standard saddle pads. The use of a pack pad can protect your animal from the rubbing and bumping of the saddle panniers. The pad doesn’t need to be thicker necessarily, just larger.