There are lots of ways to celebrate a birthday, but it’s hard to “top” what Andy Lundberg did in anticipation of turning 50 just a few weeks ago. Lundberg scaled Mont Blanc, the highest peak in the Alps (and in fact all of Western Europe), reaching the summit of 15,574 feet on July 31. Also known as “La Dame Blanche” (French for “White Lady”), Mont Blanc lies between the regions of Aosta Valley in Italy and Haute-Savoie in France. “Somehow, I managed a smile when I reached the top but I don’t know how–that was a real haul,” Lundberg said. “With the wind chill it was about -10 degrees Fahrenheit up there.” A Palisades resident since 1985, Lundberg is a partner in Latham & Watkins’ Los Angeles office and co-chairs the firm’s global Insurance Coverage Practice Group. He was recently named one of America’s top 10 policyholder lawyers. Lundberg’s passion for mountain climbing was ignited in 1994 at his 20-year high school reunion in Seattle, Washington, where he was born and raised. “I had a few drinks and entered into a pact with my two best buddies from the class of ’74 to climb Mt. Rainier the following summer,” Lundberg recalled. “I did, I liked it and I’ve climbed it three more times since then.” Rainier is the tallest mountain in the Cascades at 14,410 feet and its summit is topped by a pair of volcanic craters, each over 1,000 feet in diameter. “The guide service up there (Rainier Mountaineering) has it wired,” Lundberg said. “One day of ‘school’ and two days of climbing and you’ve done something pretty unusual. Plus, you pound yourself into the best shape of your life to get ready for it.” Lundberg was instantly hooked and, upon conquering Rainier for the first time, has tried to do a climb every summer since.
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