Stampede Trail

Today, the primary access to the trail is from the George Parks Highway (Alaska Route 3) which opened in the early 1970s.

The bus was first brought to the public's attention by writer Jon Krakauer in an Outside magazine article; a book in 1996 and a film in 2007 followed.

As of 2019, Stampede Excursions continues to operate three daily tours along the trail in Pinzgauer 6x6 military grade trucks as well as Volvo C306 6x6 personnel carriers.

Traversing the beaver ponds, "mud flats,” and crossing the Teklanika River are major obstacles preventing most vehicles from continuing more than 5 miles or so down the trail.

In the 1930s miner Earl Pilgrim[4] used the trail to access his antimony claims on Stampede Creek at 63°44′27″N 150°22′45″W / 63.740739°N 150.379229°W / 63.740739; -150.379229, above the Clearwater Fork of the Toklat River.

In 1960, Yutan Construction won a contract from the new state of Alaska to upgrade the trail as part of Alaska's Pioneer Road Program, building a road for trucks to haul ore from the mine year-round for transshipment to the railroad at Lignite (near the present day town of Healy.)

When the Stampede Mine ceased operations in the 1970s, the buses were removed, but Bus 142 was left behind due to a broken rear axle, and subsequently served as a shelter for hunters, trappers, and other visitors.

The bus gained notoriety in January 1993 when Outside magazine published an article written by Jon Krakauer titled "Death of an Innocent"[7] describing the death of Christopher McCandless, an American hitchhiker who lived in the bus during the summer of 1992 while attempting to survive off the Alaskan wilderness, only to die of starvation after three and a half months.

[8] In 2017, Circle the Globe Productions filmed a pilot episode for Off the Map – a proposed series on the Travel Channel – along the trail and at the bus.

[5] Subsequently, hikers were strongly urged to avoid tying themselves to ropes as a method of crossing Alaskan rivers.

[8] After Nikanava’s death, her husband is attempting to raise awareness and funds for a cable crossing or bridge at this location.

[citation needed] In June 2020, various government agencies coordinated a training mission with the Alaska Army National Guard to remove the bus, deemed a public safety hazard after the deaths of Ackermann and Nikanava and numerous visitor rescue incidents.