Today’s RV review is of the 2025 Forest River Surveyor Legend 260BHLE. While I’ve noticed a lot of RV companies doing some really unusual things, many of those that I really like, this is about as standard a floor plan as they come. It’s a mid-sized bunkhouse travel trailer.
But there are reasons that this might be worth a look. Not everybody wants something different. Plus, the improvements to the 2025 models make this worth a second look. What am I blathering on about?
Start at the road with the Forest River Surveyor Legend 260BHLE
At just under 30 feet in overall length, this trailer rolls on Goodyear Endurance tires and includes a tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS). To me, if you don’t have one, you should get one. Not the trailer, the TPMS.
In fact (here’s my first tangent of this story!), I know of a few people recently who have mentioned that they had tires fail and didn’t know it until someone passed them on the freeway waving their hands madly. This is legit. If you have a two-axle trailer, this can happen to you. A TPMS would likely have alerted you that the tire suddenly changed air pressure.
I know of someone whose lug nuts got loose on their tire (do you have a torque wrench in your RV – here’s the one I have), which causes it to wiggle, which then causes the whole axle assembly to fail. Heat is bad.
Aside from that, this is a very basic leaf spring suspension. Meh.
The underbelly on this is heated and enclosed, plus there are 12-volt tank heaters. This could do well in shoulder season camping.
There is also only one connection for all the sewer functions—Yippee. Lastly, this has a two-inch receiver hitch at the back for your racks or whatever. But, before you choose to use that, let’s look at something else.
Sleeping in the Surveyor Legend 260BHLE
As you may have gathered from the name of this thing, it’s a bunkhouse trailer. Remember a while back we went over what RV model designations mean.
That means there are bunks in the back of this rig and, in this case, they’re double-over-double bunks. So, in theory, you can sleep two people in each bunk. Those two people will find USB power outlets and a window that opens for air flow in each bunk. Plus, each deck has a privacy curtain so you can close off the rest of the camper.
The lower bunk is hinged in the middle and the inner section can flip up to reveal cargo space below. There’s also a door at the back of the trailer so, if the bunk is flipped up, you can easily stuff a two-person kayak in here or, perhaps, a couple of bicycles. It’s a decent amount of space, but it still can’t hold a candle to the functionality of the Ember RV Touring Edition 24MSL.
There’s also a bedroom up front in this model with a proper queen-sized bed. On either side of the bed are hanging storage and a drawer. Behind the hanging storage is a space for your gadgets plus power outlets to charge them or keep them running.
I like the four drawers that form the base of the queen-sized bed, and there is still space behind those drawers for slightly bulkier items.
Again, not earth-shattering, but they got the details right.
Cooking in the Forest River Surveyor Legend 260BHLE
One of the reasons I chose to share this trailer was two improvements made for 2025. One of those is (drum roll, please) the oven. This now sports a 21” RV oven! I guess the folks at Surveyor may have been reading my rants about the smaller one, so they upped the size for this year.
This is a big deal to me and I also know lots of you never use the oven. I would like to see the oven as an option altogether, but it’s not. So, if they’re going to install one, might as well be one that works.
This rig also features an L-shaped kitchen along with a breakfast bar. There’s actually good counter space in here. I have to say if I were giving stars for stuff, I’d give the kitchen five of them. That’s out of five, not ten, mind you.
They’ve also done a good job with lighting and a respectable job of storage.
For 2025, all remnants of the propane-electric fridge are just meant for the history books—which is something I said was coming. I recently had a Facebook fight with a whole group of people who said they wouldn’t buy an RV if it didn’t have a propane-electric fridge. So they’d better start shopping today because I don’t think there will be any of these in 2-3 years, if even that long.
There’s also a pantry to add to the storage space.
But wait, there’s more!
You can also cook outside, which is where you’ll find a flat-top griddle and a small refrigerator. There’s also a spray port here for “sinkly” stuff and water fights. I mean, come on. You’re outside, there’s a pressurized water system and Uncle Fred is just sitting. Right. There. Talking politics, no less.
Living space in the Surveyor Legend 260BHLE
I like choices, as we all do, and this one offers three when it comes to the seating space. You can do the traditional dinette with its knee-knocker table mount. You can do theater seats. Or you can have a couch.
If you go the couch route, that means you could get two additional folks in here at night, which means you can sleep up to ten people.
Yeah, no. Ten people in a trailer under 30 feet means I’m going to a hotel, thank you very much. But you could if you wanted to, and some people actually like their family. Well, I like my wife’s family.
This also sports one of those fancy installed vacuums in the kitchen that features a kick-on dust tray thingamabopper.
Boondocking and travel access
When the slide on this is in, you’re not really able to get to the bathroom, kitchen or bunks. That’s due to the breakfast bar sticking out and allllllllllmost touching the fridge.
While 200 watts of solar is technically standard, the company is presently adding a second 200-watt panel to current builds. That would be more than enough to compensate for that fridge.
Conclusions on the Forest River Surveyor Legend
Little things mean a lot, and the fact that the company listened to customers and made changes accordingly is pretty nifty. Another change they made was to the vent fan in the bathroom—which is now a high-performance model.
They also have no floor vents for the furnace. You can opt-in 50-amp service (it’s normally 30) if you live where you want a second air conditioner.
I looked and looked and couldn’t find an MSRP for this trailer. But I suspect, based on the selling prices I see, that it’s somewhere in the mid-$40K range.
So then compare that to the Ember RV Touring Edition 24MSL that we referenced above. Which would I choose if it were my money?
Without any hesitation, I would scrape together whatever pennies I could and go with the Ember. While this rig does have a bunch of improvements for 2025, the Ember has a better suspension, better build quality, that incredible reconfigurable bunk area, a bedroom that has a Murphy bed that you can just leave down, better windows and so much more.
So, when people tell me the RV industry needs to do better, they do do better. But people keep buying based on price rather than value.
I get that for a lot of people an RV is used very occasionally, so price is a big factor. But then those who shop for the least-expensive over the better-made products really should recognize that they are contributing to the fact that there is less incentive to build a quality product over a low-priced one.
This translates all the way up the food chain to the suppliers of things like appliances and such.
So, regarding buyers who tolerate rigs with small ovens, leaf spring suspensions, and all the other budget-focused aspects and who then complain on social media that RV quality is poor, I wonder if they ever wonder why? It’s because the comments from the majority of RV shoppers who tell the RV industry that price is a leading factor in their decision-making get shared with the companies that bid on supplying air conditioners, refrigerators, stoves, vent fans, suspensions, tires and all the other bits in an RV. The components are thus budget-focused by popular demand.
This is a decent enough floor plan with some upgraded features and good usability. In fact, it’s also one that’s very popular. Surveyor Legend has a reputation as a brand that people return to.
It’s nice to see the features included that I have been harping on for years now. So, now you can say this trailer is almost where I can recommend it enthusiastically, except for that vintage suspension. But that’s why there are brands like Ember and Flagstaff.
My thanks to Josh from Bish’s RV for the photos and video in this article.
More about these RV reviews
These RV reviews are written based on information provided by the manufacturers along with our writer’s own research. They are based on information from a single unit and may not reflect your actual experience. Shop your RV and dealership carefully before making a buying decision. We receive no money or other financial benefits from these reviews. They are intended only as a brief overview of the vehicle, not a comprehensive critique, which would require a thorough inspection and/or test drive.
Tony comes to RVtravel.com having worked at an RV dealership and been a life long RV enthusiast. He also has written the syndicated Curbside column about cars. He also works closely with a number of RV manufacturers to get an inside look at how things are done and is a brand ambassador for Rockwood Mini Lite with his wife, Peggy.
You can also check out his RV podcast with his wife, Peggy.
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8-10 people? REALLY? A bit short on the fresh water, especially if you have a trailer full of people. A heated underbelly is a big plus if you do any winter-style camping. But you’re going to want Lipo batteries to keep that fridge going. Compressor fridges are the way to go but you need power to keep them running. This is where the gas/electric fridge shines (even if they are less efficient and don’t cool as well). Actually, a lot to like in this trailer even with my dislikes.
If you can’t access the bathroom while traveling without opening the slide, it’s a “No Sale” RV for many RVers. Especially if you have a couple of young “bunk occupants” riding in the back seat of the crew cab towing this trailer. Or an older retired couple, who would be the only ones who would order it with the theater seats,.
And, speaking of flexibility, if the outdoor kitchen were optional and bunks removable, the big side hatch could access a combined bunkroom/garage/office, just as it does in the Ember. So close, yet so far away!
Thank you, Tony! 🙂 Why so little fresh water capacity? Seems odd. At least it is not less than gray OR black. Seems like a very nice RV. The bathroom access while traveling would be a concern and likely preclude buying this. Thanks again, have a great week, safe travels, and safe stays! 🙂