KATMANDU (Nepal) - EXPLORER Ranulph Fiennes, who become the oldest Briton to scale Mount Everest, returned safely from the mountain Sunday.

Mr Fiennes, 65, reached the 29,035-foot (8,850-metre) summit last week. He was among dozens of climbers who took advantage of a break in the weather to conquer the world's highest mountain.

Mr Fiennes flew back to the Nepalese capital, Katmandu, on Sunday and appeared to be in good health.

In brief comments to reporters, he said the climb to the summit was 'quite quick.' He reached the summit with his Sherpa guide at 4.30am on Thursday after trekking all night from their camp at South Col.

'We reached the summit about the same time as the sun ... the moon was also there,' he said. 'It was cold and windy.'

Climbers make their last trek to the summit at night so they reach the top in the morning and have enough time for their return journey while it is relatively calm.

Weather conditions usually deteriorate in the afternoon, making it difficult for climbers to find their way down.

Mr Fiennes is best known for his polar expeditions. He tried to climb Everest in 2005 but suffered a heart attack as he neared the summit and had to be rushed to a hospital. He made another unsuccessful attempt in 2007.

He climbed to raise money for the Marie Curie Cancer Care foundation to honor his wife and sister, who both died of cancer.

Nepalese climber Min Bahadur Sherchan is the oldest person to scale Everest. He climbed at age 76. -- AP