Christine Boskoff and her climbing partner failed to return home as planned December 4. The body of her partner, photographer Charlie Fowler, was recovered from the mountain in December, and her family had lost hope she would return alive.

The search for Boskoff recently resumed after snowy conditions forced efforts to be suspended over the winter. Her passport and camera were found by her body late last week, said her mother, Joyce Feld of Appleton, Wisconsin.

"Her dreams were doing something like this and she always did everything she wanted to," her mother said. "She crowded more things into her life than I did in my long life because she was always active."

Boskoff's body will not be brought down from the 14,000-foot (4,267-meter) peak for about a month, until 15 rescuers can climb the rocky terrain to bring it down, Feld said. Her body was covered with stones on Monday to protect it until then, Feld said.

Boskoff ascended six of the world's 26,000-foot (7,925-meter)-plus peaks, including Mount Everest. She owned Mountain Madness, a Seattle adventure travel company formerly owned by Scott Fischer, one of the guides who died on Mount Everest in the 1996 season.

Fowler, who was from Colorado, was an expert on climbing in southwestern China. He guided climbers up Everest and climbed others of the world's tallest and most difficult peaks. Both lived in Norwood, Colorado.