Overview

Date last seen: October 27, 2000
Last seen location: Butte, Alaska, near the Knik Glacier/Jim Creek area

Main Circumstances

• Left for a solo bear hunting trip expected to last three to four days.
• Was last confirmed at a gas station in Butte before heading toward the hunting area.
• His ATV was later found abandoned on a trail near Jim Creek.
• An extensive search involving multiple agencies failed to locate him.
• Alfred Kochendorfer has never been found, and his disappearance remains unsolved.

Detailed Case Breakdown

Alfred Nicholas Kochendorfer Disappearance (2000): Alaska Hunter Who Vanished Near Knik Glacier

Very Brief Case Summary

Date last seen: October 27, 2000
Last seen location: Butte, Alaska, near the Knik Glacier/Jim Creek area

Main Circumstances

• Left for a solo bear hunting trip expected to last three to four days.
• Was last confirmed at a gas station in Butte before heading toward the hunting area.
• His ATV was later found abandoned on a trail near Jim Creek.
• An extensive search involving multiple agencies failed to locate him.
• Alfred Kochendorfer has never been found, and his disappearance remains unsolved.

Alfred Nicholas Kochendorfer Disappearance: What Happened to the Alaska Hunter Who Vanished in 2000?

On October 27, 2000, 49-year-old Alfred Nicholas Kochendorfer left his family’s home in Palmer, Alaska, for what should have been a routine solo bear hunting trip near the face of Knik Glacier in Butte. An experienced outdoorsman familiar with the rugged terrain, Kochendorfer planned to spend only three or four days hunting before returning home.

He was last known to have stopped at a gas station in Butte later that day before continuing toward the Jim Creek hunting area. It would be the final confirmed sighting of him.

According to investigators, Kochendorfer brought equipment appropriate for an extended hunting trip, including:

• Cold-weather clothing
• Hunting gear
• A gray dome tent
• Extra gasoline
• Supplies for several days in the wilderness

When he failed to return as expected, concern quickly grew.

Several days later, two hunters discovered Kochendorfer’s all-terrain vehicle (ATV) abandoned along a trail in the Jim Creek area, northeast of Palmer. The vehicle itself offered few clues, and there was no sign of Kochendorfer nearby.

Search teams conducted an extensive ground and aerial search of the surrounding wilderness. Despite covering large sections of difficult terrain near Knik Glacier, no trace of Kochendorfer was ever located.

The challenging environment has long complicated the investigation. The region contains dense forests, wetlands, rivers, steep mountainsides, crevasses, and rapidly changing weather conditions. Investigators have never determined whether Kochendorfer suffered an accident, encountered wildlife, or experienced another unknown event.

Because no physical evidence indicating foul play has ever been publicly disclosed, authorities generally continue to classify the case as a lost or injured missing person rather than a confirmed criminal investigation.

Latest Investigation Information

More than two decades later, Alfred Kochendorfer remains missing.

The Alaska State Troopers continue to list the disappearance as an open missing-person investigation. Public case information has not revealed any significant new evidence, confirmed sightings, or major investigative breakthroughs since the initial search efforts.

His case also continues to receive exposure through long-term missing persons databases, helping preserve the possibility that new information or advances in forensic investigations could eventually provide answers.