Briton 'missing' on Mont Blanc is found after he calls French police to say: Sorry, I got home safely 10 days ago

A British climber who abandoned his climbing equipment on Mont Blanc during a snow storm sparked a massive manhunt by police - only for him to turn up in a pub at home in England safe and sound ten days later.

The man, known only as Mark, left his tent, camera and return train ticket 11,000ft up the French mountain while attempting to scale the peak, sparking fears he had perished.

Rescuers on foot and in helicopters scoured the area known as Vallee Blanche. They even checked CCTV footage of chair lifts to see if he had come back down the mountain.

An appeal had also been launched in French newspaper Le Dauphine featuring a photograph of the man which was found in the abandoned tent.

The appeal read: 'Who is this man and where is he?

'This self-portrait is without doubt the last photograph he took.'

Mark, who is in his thirties, was last seen at 8,800ft near a mountain refuge the day he started climbing.

He was last seen that night struggling to erect his tent in a snow storm.

Dangerous: The Vallee Blanche near Mont Blanc, where Mark abandonned his equipment

After 10 days, police had given up hope of finding him alive - then the sheepish climber called to say he was safe and sound at home in London.

Mark said he had fallen into a crevasse during the blizzard and decided it was safer to leave his equipment and head back to the resort town of Chamonix.

Once there he packed his bags, bought another ticket and headed back to England.

A spokesman for Chamonix police told the Mirror: 'We certainly spent a lot of time and money trying to find this man - but at least it has a happy ending and he is safe.'

Around 50 people die each year trying to climb Mont Blanc.