French Canadian tourists Etienne Lemieux, pictured here with a beanie, was intending to walk the Kepler Track with Louis-Vincent Lessar.
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The male was found within a field of avalanche debris and is about 350 metres below the Kepler track proper.
A man’s body was discovered at around 4pm yesterday during an aerial search, in an area between the Hanging Valley Hut and the Iris Burn Hut, police say.
Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs spokesperson François Lasalle confirmed to The Canadian Press on Saturday night that the Canadian authorities had been informed of the disappearance of two Canadians.
Mr Lessard and Mr Lemieux were last seen on July 7 after travelling by bus to Te Anau from Queenstown, Senior Sergeant Craig Dinnissen, of Dunedin, said.
Two Université de Montréal students visiting New Zealand were reported missing by their families, after they failed to return to Canada as scheduled.
Police Search and Rescue Squad and the Queenstown Combined Investigation Unit staff are both involved.
A Facebook page was quickly set up to spread the word about the missing hikers.
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Lemieux’s sister Véronique, confirmed to Presse Canadienne that her brother and his friend had disappeared.
