Wellington – Police are trying to figure out why a tourist from the Czech Republic ended up spending nearly a month in the New Zealand wilderness after her partner died during a hike.
The woman was found on Wednesday living in a park warden’s hut on the scenic Routeburn Track in the “highly unusual case,” police said in a statement on Thursday.
The couple began their winter hike on July 24 and the man fell down a steep slope four days later, police said.
The woman was able to reach him but he died soon after. Police said she then made her way to the hut where she has been living since.
Police said they launched a search after finding out the couple was missing only on Wednesday morning.
