French search for British hiker may be postponed until spring

Dingley’s partner, Daniel Colegate, who had been hiking with her but was house-sitting at a French farmhouse on 22 November, said earlier this month he did not believe she fell or had some other kind of accident.

He also dismissed suggestions she could have voluntarily disappeared.

Writing on Facebook, Colegate denied the suggestion Dingley would spark a major search operation by vanishing, rather than simply telling him she needed time alone. He said: “All of which leads me to believe that somebody else has been involved in Esther’s disappearance and against her will.

“This is a terrifying prospect and I wish I could believe otherwise, but I cannot.”

The couple, who have been together for almost 19 years, met at Oxford University and lived in Durham before they set off travelling around Europe in a camper van six years ago.