An Australian woman who went missing alone in Canada’s wilderness has been found dead after an “unfortunate accident”.

Brisbane woman Julia-Mary Lane, 25, failed to return home from a hiking trip at Bear Lake near Cranbrook in British Columbia.

The experienced hiker, who had set out on Saturday afternoon (local time) in an area of steep terrain and bears, was reported missing on Sunday morning.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police confirmed that two hikers discovered her body on Tuesday (local time).

“She was alone, it appears, and just on some pretty steep terrain,”
Corporal James Grandy told Nine News.

“It looks like it was accidental.”

A statement from Ms Lane’s family said she died in an “unfortunate hiking accident”.

“We have lost our beautiful baby girl, Julia-Mary RIP in an unfortunate hiking accident.

“Please allow us 24 hours to process this sad news.”

Ms Lane had been living in Canada since January and was visiting the Canmore area for a few days.

She was reported missing by her housemate who posted her concern on social media when she failed to return home.

“I haven’t seen my young Australian housemate, JM, since Saturday afternoon and I’m wondering if anyone ran across her while hiking?” she wrote on Facebook.

“I just spoke to her family in Australia and they are all very worried.

“Disappearing like this is completely out of character for JM.

“They are normally in contact with her daily and have not heard from her since Saturday morning.”

Before setting off, Ms Lane had reached out to other hikers on social media to see if she could join anyone else’s plans.

“Hi all, I’m visiting from Canmore for a few days and would love to join any moderate to challenging hikes anyone has planned,” she said.

“I am comfortable hiking solo but would prefer to go with a group to minimise bear risk, of course.”

Frontline officers located Ms Lane’s vehicle parked near Bear Lake.

“Search and rescue, along with the RCMP’s police dog services, and the use of a drone, were engaged in the search,” Corporal Grandy said.

“Unfortunately, searchers found the woman deceased. The death is not considered suspicious.”