Esther Dingley: Missing hiker's boyfriend resumes search alone

Esther went missing while on a solo trek in the Pyrenees in November

The partner of a British hiker who went missing in the Pyrenees five months ago has resumed the search for her alone.

Daniel Colegate is scouring the lower mountainsides in the area where Esther Dingley was last seen in November.

Spanish and French authorities are waiting for snow in the higher parts around Pic de Sauvegarde to clear before resuming their search.

Mr Colegate has previously said he fears Ms Dingley may have been "taken against her will".

Ms Dingley, 37, was on a solo trek originating in Benasque in Spain and had planned to spend 22 November, when she was last heard from, at Refuge de Venasque in France.

Esther Dingley and Dan Colegate were six years into a campervan tour of Europe when she went missing

Mr Colegate said the "higher altitude portions" of Ms Dingley's route "remain under a thick blanket of snow" but he is "exploring" the lower areas "paying particular attention to the woodlands immediately bordering her proposed route, possible alternative trails and also in the valley between her last known location and Benasque village".

He said: "Although I still find it very hard to understand why Esther was not found in November if she had suffered an accident, a feeling that deepens the more time I spend in the area, I will continue to search because it is all I can do.

"I remain in regular contact with the authorities and I am recording all of my activities using a GPS device, passing this information to the police and search teams to assist their own planning when the time comes.

"I remain grateful for the support and the efforts of all of the many professionals involved in the search for Esther."

Daniel Colegate said there is still a lot of snow in the higher areas near Refuge de Venasque

The couple from Durham were six years into a campervan tour of Europe when Ms Dingley went missing.

Anyone with information on Ms Dingley's disappearance is asked to contact LBT Global on 0800 098 8485 or email [e-mail].