So I picked up this set of Jandd Mountain Panniers that I THINK I'm happy with. They took me about half an hour to install so that I'm comfortable they will stay on the rack. However, I typically REMOVE my panniers when I leave the bike for an extended period, and these don't seem to want to come off.

Is there a trick to loosening the bottom hooks so that they give up the death grip and let me have my bags?

Loosen the buckle to take tension off the hook then yank the handle up and back towards the rear of the bike..

+1

Papa, if yours are like mine, there is both an adjustable strap and a bungie cord keeping tension on the S (bottom) hook. I'd loosen the strap, pull the whole pannier up by the handle until the top hooks were clear of the rail. The S hook was the last thing to come off.

Thanks, Sirrus and TJ.

In theory, your instructions would probably work, but there must be something about my rack that forces the bags in so tight that I can't even get my fingers in there to loosen ANYTHING. I took them on an overnight this weekend and had a miserable time with them. The irony is that they were so tight, I couldn't budge them when I wanted to, but when my directions suddenly sent me off into a dirt trail, the moderate bumpiness knocked one of the bags right off.

I've returned them already. They're probably good for some people, but they're just not what I need.