David grew up in the small northern Minnesota town of Grand Rapids and started hunting ruffed grouse when he was eleven years old. At twelve he hunted deer for the first time, and killed one the next fall with a Ruger .44 Magnum rifle handed down to him by his grandfather.
In college, David was offered an Air Force ROTC scholarship at the University of Minnesota-Duluth and went on to graduate with a BA in political science and second lieutenant bars. After completing his service and additional schooling, David moved to Colorado. In addition to his volunteer work with CO BHA, he is also a life member of the Minnesota Deer Hunters Association, and a world-class mountaineer.
During the spring of 2006, David tackled the world’s highest mountain, Mount Everest, and climbed to over 25,000 feet on the north/Tibet side of this cloud-piercing peak. You can read about David’s climbs, travels, and other adventures in 4/44/14 I (Four Years and Forty-Four Fourteeners): First Fourteeners, published by Outskirts Press in 2010 (http://outskirtspress.com/44414/), 4/44/14 II: Nemesis, published in 2011 (http://outskirtspress.com/44414_II), and Age-Old Quests: Hunting, Climbing & Trekking, published in 2012 (http://outskirtspress.com/ageoldquests/).
About Caitlin Thompson