David Carle grew up in Orange County, California, received his bachelors degree at UC Davis in Wildlife and Fisheries Biology and a masters degree from CSU Sacramento in Recreation and Parks Administration. He was a ranger in California State Parks for 27 years; including the Mendocino Coast, Hearst Castle, the Auburn State Recreation Area (in the gold country of the Sierra foothills), and the State Indian Museum in Sacramento. From 1982 through 2000, at the Mono Lake Tufa State Reserve, he shared the unit ranger position with his wife, participating in the long effort to protect that Eastern Sierra inland sea from the effects of stream diversions to Los Angeles. He taught biology and natural history courses for several years in the 1990s at Cerro Coso Community College in Mammoth Lakes., served as President of the Mono Basin Historical Society, and since January 2021 as the President of the California State Park Rangers Association (CSPRA).
