Soaring Eagle Campers announces their first fully self-contained truck camper with a wet bath. This is a groundbreaking design for the two-and-a-half year-old company, and a sign of Soaring Eagles to come.
About 500 feet from the front door of the RV Hall of Fame this past September, we witnessed something we had never seen before in all of our time in this industry.
In the Soaring Eagle Camper booth at the Elkhart RV Open House, a prominent truck dealer walked into the new Soaring Eagle AERIE (pronounced Air-eee) and literally had to sit down from his amazement. At first, we thought he was kidding around, but he stayed seated and kept repeating the same words as he surveyed the camper before him. And I quote, “They did it. They really did it.”
What was Dave Hofert of D&H RV seeing that impressed him so much? First, the wet bath in the Soaring Eagle AERIE is shockingly large, modern, and open—especially for a camper designed for three-quarter ton trucks. Believe it or not, the wet bath in the AERIE was one of the stand-outs of the Elkhart RV Open House, if not the biggest truck camper talk of the event. In all our years at the Louisville and Elkhart industry gatherings, a wet bath has never generated this kind of buzz.
Second, the rest of the Soaring Eagle AERIE presented the features of a full-blown and fully self-contained truck camper. Not only was there a wet bath with a toilet, shower, and a privacy screen door, but there was a kitchen with a sink, cooktop, and microwave, a north-south cabover, and an impressive amount of well-sorted storage and cabinetry. To say this is a significant leap from the purposefully spartan feature set of Soaring Eagle’s Adlar series is an understatement.
Third, the AERIE exterior and interior design and materials were surprisingly refined. There was little, if any, hint of that purposefully spartan Adlar look. In its place is a new world of sophistication and style that even had us taking second and third looks at what Soaring Eagle Campers had wrought. The photos that follow will back that up. An in-person encounter with the AERIE will underline it. They really did it.
To get the back story on the all-new 2025 Soaring Eagle AERIE, we talked to Scott Tuttle, Partner at Soaring Eagle Campers.
Above: The Soaring Eagle AERIE floor plan
The 2025 Soaring Eagle AERIE is a hard side, non-slide, wet bath truck camper made for long bed trucks. The interior floor length of the 2025 Soaring Eagle AERIE is 7’5”, the interior width is 88.5”, and the interior height is 6’ 8”. The center of gravity is 30” from the front wall.
The AERIE 8 has a 28 gallon fresh tank, 13 gallon grey tank, and a 5 gallon cassette toilet. It comes standard with a 100Ah lithium battery, but will fit up to four 100Ah batteries. It has one 20 pound propane tank (production version).
Soaring Eagle Campers is reporting the base weight of the AERIE at 2,280 pounds. The base cost of the 2025 Soaring Eagle AERIE starts at $39,995. Click here to request a Soaring Eagle brochure.
Tell us about the back story of the Soaring Eagle AERIE, and why you made it a priority for 2025.
For the past two and a half years, we have been focused on the opportunities that we saw for minimalist campers for half-ton and mid-size trucks. That attracted customers to us who wanted more. These customers liked how we built our campers and were thrilled with our all-aluminum and composite structure. They told us, “If you ever build a camper with a bathroom, a kitchen, and more amenities, let us know”.
It became obvious that our next camper should have amenities like an enclosed bathroom and a shower. That was the genesis of AERIE.
Before we started, we asked ourselves, “What do we want this camper to be?” We decided that we wanted it to fit in an 8-foot bed on a three-quarter ton truck. And with that decision, Soaring Eagle Campers graduated to bigger trucks.
Our goal was to stay under 2,400 pounds so that it would payload match three-quarter tons and we were able to pull that off. Even with a lot of aluminum structure, it came in at 2,280 pounds. For us, it’s heavy. We’re used to 1,200 pound campers.
Is there more aluminum structure in the AERIE compared to other Soaring Eagle campers?
Yes. The bedroom floor is made from two-inch aluminum and there are a lot of tubes for extra strength. The roof is also two-inch thick aluminum. The AERIE is definitely overbuilt in comparison to our other models.
The overall look of the AERIE is notably more sophisticated than your previous models. Was that intentional?
Yes. The AERIE revolves around a different customer. It’s for experienced RVers. It’s designed for couples who want a more sophisticated look and feel to their coach and may take a kid or grandkid with them when they go camping.
At $39,995, the AERIE is also considerably more expensive than our other campers. We wanted it to be a beautiful blend of functionality, fit and finish, and comfort. I think we achieved that.
“We wanted it to be a beautiful blend of functionality, fit and finish, and comfort. I think we achieved that.”
Did you start with a previous floor plan—perhaps from CampLite—or is the AERIE a new design?
The AERIE is a new design from the ground up. We designed the camper around what we wanted in the wet bath. We wanted it to be spacious and functional. We wanted it to be bigger than what a lot of the other campers have. With that focus, we designed the wet bath first. Whatever space was left, was for the kitchen. The final wet bath design is 40 inches by 40 inches, making it very roomy.
At the Elkhart RV Open House, an industry attendee walked into the AERIE wet bath and said, “I’m 6’6” tall and 300 pounds. I can actually get into this wet bath and use it. I can’t say that about most of the wet baths we sell.” How did you go about designing the rest of the camper?
We started by laying it out on paper. I still have the initial sketches on the white board in my office. Then we built a physical prototype and made numerous adjustments until it was right.
The layered mountain and forest exterior graphics are quite the evolution for Soaring Eagle. Is this the new look for Soaring Eagle?
All of our units have mountains and trees. For the AERIE, we created a different take on this theme and chose a set of mountains with different shades of grey. We added tree lines and used striping along the front cabover as an accent.
I got the final element from the automotive market. I saw a car with a black wing that extended into the car with a graphic. That’s what inspired us to add the graphic on the top which matched up with the black rear spoiler on the AERIE. We tried to make the exterior graphics for the AERIE clean and fun.
Above: The AERIE wet bath was the talk of the Elkhart RV Open House
Tell us about the wet bath shower pan, countertop, walls, and backsplash material. Those all appear new for Soaring Eagle.
There are a lot of wet baths in the market that are sterile and white. That’s not what we wanted for the AERIE.
First, we didn’t allow ourselves to be restricted by the shower pans that were currently available from suppliers. We designed our own and had it custom-fabricated by a composite manufacturer. We incorporated CNC cut grooves for style. As shower pans go, it’s good-looking, stout, and will stand the test of time.
The herringbone pattern feature wall is an Azdel-backed composite wall board. In some of our photos from the Elkhart show, the aluminum below the countertop looks light grey. It looks great and I think we’re going to actually make that lower wall grey for the production models.
Will you be adding a sink to the wet bath?
Yes. The production AERIE will have a bathroom sink and a mirror. We didn’t have these features ready for the Elkhart RV Open House, but we will have them in the production units.
Why did you choose a sliding door curtain instead of a hard door for the wet bath?
That’s something we saw in a half-million-dollar motorhome designed for the toy hauler market. We immediately liked it for the AERIE. The sliding curtain is open at the top to vent moisture. It also gives the customer the option to have the bathroom closed or open. Leaving it open gives the AERIE a more open-airy feel. It’s much better than having a giant bulky wall that closed off the whole camper.
Why did you choose the Dometic CTW 4110 cassette toilet?
We liked the dimensions, the ceramic insert, and the fact that it goes straight out the back. We wanted the toilet to face the front and have the cassette exit out the back. The Dometic cassette just made sense to us.
What’s the capacity of the Dometic CTW 4110?
The black tank capacity is 19 liters (5 gallons). The fresh water reservoir is 7 liters (1.84 gallons). It has a scratch-resistant ceramic inlay, but it’s lighter than a ceramic toilet.
Is the AERIE a fully self-contained camper with fresh and grey holding tanks?
Yes.
What size are the holding tanks?
The fresh tank is 28 gallons. The grey tank is 13 gallons.
The AERIE is the first Soaring Eagle with a basement. Was that necessary to accommodate the wet bath?
We didn’t have to do it. We wanted to do it. The basement design gives the AERIE more floor space by moving the interior floor up and over the wheel wells of the truck. It also gave us more basement room for the fresh and grey tank and the ability to have a pull-out storage tray.
We will be adding one additional inch to the basement to give a little more clearance for the LP lines and plumbing. We’re also adding one inch of length to the cabover bed area. In the prototype, an 80-inch mattress is a bit too snug.
What’s the height of the basement?
The AERIE has a ten-inch basement. The basement is also fully insulated and heated with ducts from the standard Truma Combi heating system. We want people to be able to use the AERIE in the winter.
Heating the basement is definitely a big deal for winter camping. The basement also features a metal slide-out drawer. How deep is that drawer?
The basement slide-out tray is 60 inches long, 20 inches wide, and has 6 inch sides, but there is additional storage height.
The AERIE model you brought to Elkhart had two 20-pound vertical propane tanks. You mentioned at the event that you were considering changing to one 20-pound vertical tank. Is that the plan?
We are looking closely at getting rid of one of the propane tanks to add more exterior storage. The AERIE comes standard with a 12-volt compressor refrigerator, so only the Truma Combi and kitchen cooktop use propane.
What material is the cabinetry in the AERIE?
It’s vinyl-wrapped wood. While the entire structure is made of aluminum and composite, we only use wood for our cabinetry.
You already stated that the wet bath was the priority and the kitchen got what was left over. Was the kitchen design really that simple?
Once the wet bath was designed, we tried a number of kitchen configurations. First, we tried a straight kitchen, but it was too tight. Then we went around the corner with it. This gave us more room for the two-burner cooktop and a larger stainless steel sink. It also gave us more lower cabinetry space. The cabinet under the sink goes into the back corner.
Is the countertop in the kitchen the same material as the bathroom?
Yes. They’re high gloss with great contrast to the grey cabinetry.
Why did you decide on an L-shape dinette? Why not a small two-top face-to-face?
We didn’t have the space. With the large wet bath and L-shape kitchen, an L-shape dinette worked the best in this space. Two people can fit in it all day long.
We used automotive-grade foam in the seating with rich faux leather. We think it looks quite nice, and it’s definitely comfortable.
Underneath the passenger’s side dinette cushion is a 4.5-inch shallow storage area. Under the dinette front wall cushion is the lithium battery bank and fresh tank.
Does the dinette convert into a bed?
The dinette is 65 inches long (5.4 feet) on the passenger’s side. It’s perfect for kids or shorter adults.
Is there an option for a dinette table?
Yes, a swiveling and adjustable table table is standard.
The north-south cabover is another nice touch for a camper this size. Does the cabover feature a true 80-inch queen-size bed?
Yes.
Where are the outlets on the AERIE?
They’re all over. There are 110-volt and USB outlets on both sides of the cabover. There’s an outlet on the outer bathroom wall facing the kitchen area. There’s another outlet in the dinette area below the microwave and storage area. We designed the camper the way we would want to use it.
The microwave in the AERIE is also an air fryer. Why did you choose that model and feature?
Why not? People are into air fryers because they are a healthier way to cook. Ours is a microwave, convection oven, and air fryer combination.
Tell us about the standard refrigerator in the AERIE. What size is it?
It’s a 3.3 cubic foot, 12-volt compressor EverChill refrigerator. It has a nice freezer in it.
The AERIE comes standard with the Truma Combi heat and hot water system. Why did you select the Truma Combi, and why did you make it standard?
Most of the customers who buy our smaller half-ton and mid-size Adlar models don’t camp in freezing temperatures. They typically use a small ceramic heater, Buddy heater, or the heat pump in our optional air conditioner as their heat source. We also have Adlar customers who opt for the Truma Vario Heat furnace.
The AERIE customer will want a built-in furnace standard. They want to ski in the winter and take their rig anywhere in any season. The Truma Combi is simple and high-end in terms of quality and efficiency. It’s leaps and bounds better than the standard water heater and furnace typically used in the market. I want our customers to understand that we’ve spared no expense in making the AERIE. That’s why the Truma Combi is standard for this model. It’s in another category.
“I want our customers to understand that we’ve spared no expense in making the AERIE. That’s why the Truma Combi is standard for this model.”
After the Elkhart RV Open House, Truma put the AERIE into their climate chamber for testing. How did that test go?
The test was actually quite extensive. First, Truma placed temperature sensors in temperature sensitive areas including five sensors in the main living area, the propane compartment, cassette toilet compartment, the basement slide-out tray (mid-basement), and on top of the water tank.
Second, Truma put the AERIE inside their climate chamber, opened the entry door, every window, and every vent and set the chamber temperature control to 5 degrees (all temperatures in Fahrenheit). Then they allowed the temperature inside and outside the AERIE to equalize at 5 degrees. This can take up to ten hours.
Next they shut the entry door, closed the windows, closed the vents, and turned on the Truma furnace to a maximum setting of 86 degrees. To earn Truma Gold Certification, the unit has to warm to a temperature difference of at least 63 degrees within four hours. That means the inside would have to read no less than 68 degrees at on average for the five main temperature sensors.
Above: Truma’s thermal imaging during the climate chamber testing
The AERIE hit this goal in just over two hours and measured over 82 degrees at four hours. That’s a 77 degree difference. For this outstanding performance, the AERIE earned Truma’s Gold Certification.
The thermal imaging and test chart (above) show the results. The curved lines represent each of the five main sensors as they warmed over time.
What’s more incredible is that the basement was over 120 degrees. We’re actually going to divert a little less heat to the basement based on the results.
Is there an optional air conditioner for the AERIE?
Yes. We offer a Rec Pro Houghton air conditioner in the AERIE. It’s quiet, has a low amp draw, and a built-in heat pump.
What type of windows are standard; single or thermal pane?
The AERIE comes standard with dual-pane thermal windows. Again, we know people will want to take the AERIE out in four seasons.
How many batteries does the Soaring Eagle AERIE have, and where are they located?
One 100Ah heated lithium battery with Bluetooth is standard on all Soaring Eagle AERIE and Adlar truck campers for 2025. You can fit up to four 100Ah batteries in the AERIE. We’re also working on a power inverter option for 110-volt power.
Are there any new options that are available for the 2025 Soaring Eagle AERIE?
Almost everything is standard. The Truma Combi is standard. Rieco-Titan remote electric jacks are standard. One hundred and sixty watts of solar is standard, and the 100Ah lithium battery is also standard.
The options include the air conditioner, another 160-watt solar panel for 320-watts total, platinum grey exterior fiberglass, a roof rack, a batwing awning, and up to three more 100Ah batteries. That’s the option list.
Above: The 2,357 pound weight above includes the optional roof air conditioner, full LP tanks, blankets, a décor kit from the show, and some water. The base weight is 2,280 pounds.
What does the 2025 Soaring Eagle AERIE weigh with standard build features?
The camper we took to the show was 2,280 pounds.
Where is the center of gravity on the 2025 Soaring Eagle AERIE?
The AERIE center of gravity is 30-inches from the front wall. We have new scales that precisely weigh and give us the center of gravity.
The nice part about this center of gravity is that the water tank and batteries are located closer to the front of the camper, so customers with three-quarter ton trucks that have 6.5 truck beds will be able to utilize this model in their trucks.
What is the MSRP for the 2025 Soaring Eagle AERIE with standard build features?
The base is $39,995 USD.
What is the warranty for the 2025 Soaring Eagle AERIE?
Soaring Eagle Campers have a three year structural warranty, and a one-year bumper-to-bumper warranty on all of our models.
When will the 2025 Soaring Eagle AERIE be available?
The AERIE will be on dealer lots and at RV shows starting in January.
Will there be more Soaring Eagle AERIE models in the future, or is this the only AERIE model?
There will be more models in the AERIE line, just like there are more Adlars. The AERIE we’re introducing now will likely be called the AERIE 8.
Will you be making a short bed version of the AERIE?
That’s a great question. We do hope to have a short bed AERIE—maybe a longer version some day, and maybe one with a slide-out dinette.
That’s sure to excite a lot of readers. Is there anything about the 2025 Soaring Eagle AERIE that you would like to add?
The AERIE is 7’8″ and allows you to close the tailgate on a long bed truck. That way you can use your backup cameras, built-in tailgate steps, and the security of closing the tailgate when you’re away from your camper.
We’re also planning to move the convection microwave and air fryer underneath the cooktop in the kitchen. That will make the current microwave location—under the refrigerator—into additional storage.
We have been making inroads in the entry-level RV market for the last two years with our Adlar and OV-X models. Mom, Dad, and two kids can all fit in our Adlars, and they can use their half-ton truck to take their family camping. Even with a small truck like a Tacoma. You can’t sleep three or four people in many of today’s smaller, entry-level travel trailers, so we’re changing the entry-level camping market with our affordable truck campers, and I love that.
Hopefully, the AERIE will open up more doors for us with truck camper dealers out there who have not bought into the Soaring Eagle Campers entry-level products.
For more information on Soaring Eagle Campers, visit their website at soaringeaglecampers.com. Click here to request a Soaring Eagle brochure.
