Cloudland Canyon Park Manager Change: Gibson Promoted, Daniels Returns

By LYDIA BERGLAR
News Editor

At the end of March, Cloudland Canyon State Park said a bittersweet farewell to Brad Gibson who has been the park manager/park ranger since 2017. This month, the park welcomed a Dade County native, Luke Daniels, back to the park as the new park manager/park ranger.

Gibson was promoted to Georgia State Parks region one manager. He will still be involved with Cloudland Canyon, but the role also covers all northwest Georgia parks and historical sites. The parks are Cloudland Canyon, Fort Mountain, James H. Floyd, Red Top Mountain, Sweetwater Creek, and Chattahoochee Bend. The historical sites are the Chief Vann House, New Echota, Etowah Indian Mounds, Pickett’s Mill Battlefield, Resaca Battlefield, and Bush Head Shoals (a partner attraction).

Gibson describes the role of region manager as that of a conduit between headquarters and field staff. He will focus on supporting the park managers, assisting with standard operating procedures in the parks, and providing guidance on policy. It is a communication-heavy role. Just as he was supported by the previous region manager, Gibson will now support Daniels.

Daniels (who grew up in Dade) is transferring laterally from Fort Mountain State Park to Cloudland. Over the last decade, he’s worked his way up through the ranks in numerous Georgia State parks.

He first worked at Cloudland in 2013 as a maintenance ranger before moving to a park ranger position at Sloppy Floyd State Park in 2016. He was promoted to park manager at General Coffee State Park in 2020, and in 2022, he became the park manager at Fort Mountain.

The Georgia State Parks system emphasizes succession training, with Cloudland Canyon running a manager-in-training program. Gibson enjoyed training park rangers who came to the park to work with him before they applied to positions across the state. In his new role, he’ll continue supporting staff development, working on succession planning, and developing leadership skills in staff across the region.

Gibson grew up in Miami, Fla. and began his outdoor career in aquatics working as a beach lifeguard, running aquatic facilities, and training people for open water and long distance swims.

When he met his wife, Krista, who grew up in the Chattanooga area, Gibson’s path to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (DNR) began. Krista was living in Tucker, Ga. and working in Lawrenceville at the time with Mission to the World. Gibson explained “I could work in recreation anywhere, and she had her dream job, so I moved up to her.”

While the aquatics director for Rockdale County (overseeing a public pool, splash pad, and Lake Blackshear), Gibson first partnered with game wardens. This sparked his interest in working for DNR. He recalled, “I started looking for park ranger jobs, not realizing it was the job I’d always dreamed of.”

Once he became a park ranger, Gibson realized that he loves what he calls “chaos management.” He explained, “Your days are set by the events rather than a calendar. You never know how the day is going to go, and that’s what drew me in.” Rescue scenarios happen at all hours of the day and night, and Gibson enjoys the unpredictable nature of working in a park.

He enjoys the outdoor work, the organizational administrative work, and the interactions with staff and visitors. He also enjoys thinking strategically, planning for the future, and empowering his team to reach goals. The region manager position will continue to use these leadership skills.

Cloudland (one of the top three parks in the state based on attendance and revenue) has many moving parts and stakeholders. The park manager must keep all tasks moving along while also fostering relationships with stakeholders like Lula Lake Land Trust, Dade County government, local emergency services, and many volunteers.

Reflecting on his time at the park, Gibson is especially thankful for the people involved. He said, “Relationships with people in Dade County and Trenton are by far my favorite part of the job. I really enjoy where people’s hearts are, their love of the outdoors, my staff’s willingness to serve visitors, and the volunteers and Friends of Cloudland Canyon. We can’t function without our volunteers. Cloudland is an amazing park, but it’s the people who really make it a special place.”

One of the volunteers with Friends of Cloudland Canyon State Park, Charles Mahan, had the following to say about Gibson: “Everybody I know feels extremely fortunate that Brad came our way, and we’ll miss him, though as regional manager he’ll still have a positive influence on Cloudland Canyon State Park. He is the perfect blend of knowledge, judgment, caring, and a laid-back personality that made him great at his job. He had time for everybody to give input into decisions while keeping an eye on the business side.”

Mahan noted how Gibson’s leadership increased park revenues to over $2 million per year. “That made it possible to expand our service to park visitors, including remodeling our interpretive center and growing the naturalist staff from one to three. Also, Cloudland’s revenues help pay the bills at Georgia’s less visited parks.”

Mahan is thankful for Gibson’s leadership during COVID-19 and the improvements made under Gibson’s leadership, saying, “Handicapped access was improved, and all of the park’s campgrounds were renovated and improved during Brad’s time here, so he’s definitely leaving the park better than he found it. The over sixty miles of trails are in great shape, and the park’s hemlocks have been protected from the deadly hemlock woolly adelgid. Several managers-in-training have learned the job under Brad and gone on to lead other parks. And, we have been blessed to enjoy Brad’s fun family, Krista, Gray, Harper, and Landon.”