Body of missing German tourist Gisela Thor found in Central Australia, police say

Northern Territory Police have found a woman’s body at Trephina Gorge, east of Alice Springs, believed to be missing German woman Gisela Thor.

The discovery comes one day after the body of her 76-year-old husband, Wilfred Thor, was also found.

Sergeant Phil Emmett said photos taken by the pair on Friday — when they were last seen — showed them in good spirits.

“It’s such a sad end to what was obviously a lifetime of endeavour and planning to come and visit Australia. What a tragic end,” he said.

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Sergeant Emmett said police recovered a camera yesterday containing a photograph of the couple believed to have been taken shortly before they entered the nature park.

He said the photo was sent to Ms Thor’s daughter in Germany, where the family confirmed the identity of the couple.

The clothing on the woman’s body recovered today matched the clothing worn by Ms Thor in the photograph.

Police said Ms Thor’s body was found within the search area, 2.5km from the gorge’s carpark and off any official track.

Sergeant Emmett said he believed the couple had become disorientated quite early on their trip into Trephina Gorge.

“They have started wandering, trying to find their way out and they have found some groundwater — there was some groundwater available within the gorge — and [they] spent some time there,” he said.

“After that, for reasons unbeknown to me, they have parted company and one of them has moved to the west, and the other one has moved back towards the carpark in a south easterly direction.”

Police said they could not comment on the cause of death, but there were no suspicious circumstances.

“That will be a matter for the pathologists and the coroner to decide on,” Sergeant Emmett said.

This post originally appeared on ABC News.