A couple were pictured smiling arm-in-arm shortly before the woman plummeted to her death while .

Laura Barbieri, 47, was climbing Mount Guglielmo in with her boyfriend Maurizio Filini when she suddenly lost her balance and fell 160 feet down a ravine.

Paramedics and a mountain rescue helicopter raced to the mountain after he raised the alarm, but she was pronounced dead at the scene. Italian media said she likely slipped on ice despite wearing crampons on an exposed part of the trail at around 1,700 metres high and fell in front of her partner.

Her body was transported to a hospital in the nearby town of Esine. Now, a heartbreaking has been shared by Mr Filini showing the two of them sitting smiling together at the summit of the mountain just hours before the tragedy.

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Writing on social media he captioned the photo: “This was our last photo, I will love you forever my Laurina, have a good trip.” They were pictured with arms linked with a Monument to the Redeemer statue behind them at the summit.

Many people have written tributes for Laura whose funeral is to be held on Wednesday in the city of Brescia where the couple lived. Mount Guglielmo is a popular location for hiking and Laura is known to have enjoyed the outdoors.

Messages on social media told how she enjoyed climbing and would have walked the paths on Mount Guglielmo before, while she was also a fan of motorbikes and had a Ducati. "You loved risk, but life is strange: it was just a wrong step on a mountain path that took you away. I know that now, wherever you are, you are looking for something beautiful," wrote one tribute.

And other friends of Mr Filini offered their condolences on his page. One person wrote: "Hi Maurizio, I’ve just seen the picture now! .. I'm so sorry, my condolences to you, and a big hug," while another message read: "Maurizio I have no words.. I totally understand what you're going through right now. I'm giving you a huge hug."