Paul Kunes (52) and Derek Harvey (54), both members of Lynn Rotary Club, are delighted at raising about £5,000 and proud of their personal achievement on the world's highest mountain last month.

But they were disappointed at not meeting up again with legendary British explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes when they got to base camp as he had descended from there the previous day after suffering a chest infection and altitude sickness.

The pair had spoken to Sir Ranulph before going to Nepal and he had invited them to join him in his tent for a drink, as he was preparing to climb Everest to raise funds for Marie Curie Cancer Care.

The ex-SAS man, described by the Guinness Book of Records as "the world's greatest explorer", recovered enough to continue but later abandoned his attempt to reach the summit through exhaustion.

Mr Kunes, of Long Road, Terrington St Clement, a director of Marshland Telecomm, revealed that he and Mr Harvey almost missed getting to base camp because the Chinese had put pressure on the Nepalese authorities to close it before the Olympic torch was taken to the summit.

"We got to the village before base camp after walking for about four hours. Then our Sherpas said base camp was being closed the next day and if we wanted to go there we had to continue walking," he recalled.

"We had to put all our gear on again and do another four-and-a-half hour trek to get to base camp. I was absolutely exhausted when we got there and collapsed into a tent.

"I didn't think I could make it down again – but then people gave us food and drink and after a couple of hours we turned round and went back down again. It was almost dark when we got back to the village."

Mr Kunes said, ironically, they probably walked past Sir Ranulph as he was making his way down, but with no cell phones there they had no way of knowing he had left base camp.

He and Mr Harvey, of Hugh Close, North Wootton, managing director of Office Wise at Lynn, trekked for 17 days. Mr Kunes lost three stones in weight preparing for the expedition and shed another half-stone while there.

The pair have some great pictures to remind them of their adventure, including rickety suspension bridges over streams, the tented village at base camp and Everest's summit seen from a neighbouring mountain they climbed.

Mr Kunes said landing at the small Himalayan airstrip at Lukla – on a 30 degrees upward slope towards the mountainside – had been "absolutely terrifying" and an experience he would never forget!