By Stephenie Livingston, Reporter
stephenie.livingston@gaflnews.com
The new and improved River Rendezvous in Lafayette County is a safe haven for exiled hippies, weary travelers and local campers alike. Whether an artist, poet or adventure-seeker, you're sure to be welcomed.
Susie Page and her family are their own band of gypsies, traveling here from Minnesota and living in temporary housing for the past several months while fixing up the resort. And at the Rendezvous, Susie is definitely gypsy queen.
Susie and her family have been in the resort business for a combined 50-plus years. Susie's brother, Dan, has kayaked most of the local rivers and helps visitors plan their canoe or kayaking trips down the Suwannee. Her nephew, Nick, who spent several summers on the family resort in Minnesota, is also a part of the team. Susie's parents are in the process of moving to the Rendezvous as well.
Dan is an avid cave diver and discovered the Rendezvous, home of Convict Spring, a famous underwater cave diving site, several years ago. "He knew I'd fall in love with it," she said of the Rendezvous. "We saw the place as having a lot of potential." She and her husband Frank quickly decided to buy the distressed river resort late last year. "We closed before we realized how distressed it really was," said Page. It was only a few months into owning the Rendezvous that the April floods came. The Rendezvous was almost completely under water. When the waters receded, the Page's found the place in worse shape than when they first bought it. It was totally flooded. The cabins had water damage, the spring was under water and the roads washed away.
While living in a small RV, the Pages have rebuilt the resort all summer and are expecting near completion this week. "We started with the roads," Susie said. "Everything needed work, it was a mess." Next they rebuilt the campground and quickly got to work on the cabins. All that's left is to restore the damage to the Spring House and the Chalet. The A-frame cabin and other river cabins are already being rented.
With the purchase of farmland next door to the Rendezvous, Page says they hope to attract the drum community.
"I've been a drummer since I was 10, and I need an outlet for my talent. We're going to build River Hinge. It's a round fire pit where every one can gather around the fire and listen to the drums in unity," said Susie. "It will hold around 200 people." Page says she plans to have concerts and festivals in the field, but in the mean time, the resort will host karaoke nights, live bands and Christian music on Sundays at the Lodge.
Page also plans to install an Internet cafe, with specialty coffee available, and a big screen TV in the Lodge. "People can sit here and look out of the large windows at nature. We decided to leave it open," said Susie as she pointed to large mouth bass and mullet swimming in the spring.
"Isn't it just beautiful. This is the real attraction," said Page as she looked out over Convict Spring and the Suwannee River.
