Updated

Rescue teams have found the bodies of two climbers who had been missing for more than a month on Britain's highest peak.

Police Scotland said Wednesday the bodies of a man and woman had been recovered in the Ben Nevis area in the Scottish Highlands. The bodies were discovered Wednesday night.

Police say formal identification is underway and the families of Rachel Slater, 24, and Tim Newton, 27, have been notified.

The experienced climbers were reported missing on Feb. 15 when they failed to return from an expedition on Ben Nevis.

Severe weather including freezing temperatures heavy snow and a heightened avalanche risk hampered the search effort.

Ben Nevis is 1,345 meters (4,411 feet) high.