Specialized Diverge is might be one of the best Bike Packing Gravel bikes out there.
The Specialized Diverge is a bike built to explore on and off-road. The bike has flared drop bars that are easy to use to manoeuvre the bike and provide numerous hand positions. The bike is available in aluminium or carbon builds, fitting many budgets. It's nimble, feels way lighter than it is, and the handling is spot-on when faced with a bit of technical singletrack.
The frame offers a great balance of stiffness and weight, and there's enough space to take a tyre up to 47mm wide on a 700C wheel. Swap to 650B, and you'll get up to 2.1in (about 54mm) in there.
One of Diverge's key features is the Specialized Future Shock 2.0. If you've not come across this tech before, it's a system that offers 20mm of travel above the head tube and underneath the stem, and it's a lot lighter than adding a suspension fork.
Future Shock provides enough movement to lessen the vibration you experience over rough gravel surfaces, although you'll still feel big bumps and potholes. The 2.0 version offers hydraulic damping for both the compression and the rebound. In other words, rather than pogoing when you hit a bump, the movement is controlled. A dial where your headset's top cap would normally be provides adjustment. The whole system works a treat for a bike of this kind.