KATHMANDU, Nov 2, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - An Australian climber has died while attempting to scale Nepal's 7,126 metre (23,379 foot) Himlung Himal, tourism officials said Sunday.

Chin-Tark Chan, 49, fell ill during his ascent of the moderately difficult mountain near the border with Tibet on October 29.

"He was dead at an altitude of 6,100 metres," Tourism Department director Himal Gautam told AFP.

Gautam said rescue efforts failed due to adverse weather conditions in the area.

"Efforts have been made to bring his body to Camp 2 from Camp 3, then his body will be flown back to Kathmandu on a helicopter," Gautam said.

He said the cause of the death was still unknown.

Lakpa Sherpa, managing director at 8K Expeditions, the company through which the Australian attempted the climb, said Chan had also attempted Himlung last year.

"He could not make it due to his health condition," Sherpa told AFP.

The expedition company says it was coordinating with family members and the Australian embassy to bring Chan's body back to Kathmandu.

Himlung Himal is located northeast of the Annapurna and Manaslu range.

Nearly 400 climbers were on the mountain this autumn season, which usually runs from late August to November.

Autumn expeditions in the Himalayas are less popular because of the shorter, colder days, snowy terrain and a narrow summit window compared to the busy spring.

Last month, a mountaineer from France and another from South Korea died during expeditions to Mount Ama Dablam.

Home to eight of the world's 10 highest peaks, including Mount Everest, Nepal welcomes hundreds of climbers every year.