Aiden Webb: Missing British backpacker dubbed 'Hercules' found dead in Vietnam

The 22-year-old was due to climb the Fansipan mountain in north Vietnam

Aiden Webb, 22, has been missing since Friday (Lisa Webb/Facebook)

The body of an experienced mountain climber from Norwich has been found nearly a week since he went missing during a backpacking trip to Vietnam.

Aiden Webb was travelling with his girlfriend and had set off on his own to climb the Fansipan mountain, Vietnam's tallest peak in the north of the country.

The 22-year-old fell and hurt himself on Friday, said his girlfriend Bluebell Baughan, 24, who was in contact with him by phone from the nearby town of Sa Pa.

His phone stopped working the next day, and his body was found on Thursday morning by rangers in the Hoang Lien National Park, according to the BBC.

Mr Webb told Ms Baughan he fell into a ravine, hurt his knee and cut his arm open on a rock, and had lost his way from the planned trail.

She raised the alarm at around 6am on Saturday and Mr Webb's father, Trevor, and his uncle, Michael, flew out on Sunday evening to help in the search.

Known to his friends as 'Hercules' due to his muscular physique, Mr Webb had planned to reach the 3,100m (10,312ft) summit – more than twice the height of Ben Nevis – in one day.

According to The Telegraph, the drama graduate had posted on Facebook days before he went missing about completing his first “official free soloing rock climb”.

His post said: “Never had so much fun and never had my mind so clear and empty.

“Definitely no 'El Capitan', but regardless. This is something I've felt I've needed to do in a long time.

Fansipan mountain in north Vietnam, where Aiden Webb is said to have been found (Getty Images)

“(Apologies in advance to all family members who think I'm loco, and reckless I'm actually a very safe climber and know my limits).”

Tributes have been paid to Mr Webb by friends on a 'Help us find Aiden in Vietnam' Facebook page set up by his family and by his former university, Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge.

Laura Marsh, the manager of the branch of fashion store Superdry in Cambridge where Mr Webb worked, said he was "a great lad who everyone liked".

Trevor Webb said he had gained permission to use drones to scour the area in the search for his son. The equipment was due to arrive today.

Mr Webb and Ms Baughan, who met at Anglia Ruskin University, were halfway through their four-month long trip when he went missing.

Local media has reported that Mr Webb's body was found at around 2,800m above sea level.