This article is from the fall 2024 edition of Mobile Baykeeper’s print quarterly, CURRENTS. The magazine is mailed to active members who have given more than $50 in the past year. To get on the magazine’s mailing list, donate here.
By Virginia Kinnier
Each time Theo Middleton pulls up to the boat ramp on the Causeway, his past is already there waiting to greet him. The commemorative sign over the ramp bears a familiar name, his dad’s, and the Stauter he puts in the water is a family heirloom only found on the coast, a gift from his grandfather to his dad in 1988, the same year Theo was born. And each time he idles away from the shore, he turns his boat in the same direction his dad and his grandfather did, on the same six-mile cruise upriver to the Runamuck Inn.
Founded in 1955 by Theo’s grandfather and four of his buddies, the Runamuck Inn sits thirteen feet off the ground on the north end of an island once known as Raft River Island. Accessible only by boat in the Tensaw River-Delta, the island itself is about 25 acres, depending on the tide, and offers its visitors a great view of passing boats and sunsets across the downtown Mobile skyline. The group leased the land until 2003, when they purchased it from Coastal Land Trust, Inc., and renamed it Runamuck Island. The camp took a beating in 2004 from Hurricane Ivan, and Katrina delivered the final blow a year later. In 2006 the group was able to rebuild the camp into what it is today.
“We were lucky enough to have a crew of skilled laborers help us rebuild, but we would not be where we are today without our dedicated members,” Theo explains. “From paperwork to design to construction crew transportation to and from the camp, it was a total group effort.”
Today the camp consists of 1100 square feet of plywood floors and walls, with swinging screen doors on both ends of a long shotgun hallway that runs through the heart of the building, providing a much-needed avenue of air flow. There are two bunk rooms, a full bathroom, and a kitchen. The camp runs on rainwater and fuel brought by boat that powers the generator. Provisions arrive in loaded ice chests, and when the ice runs out, it’s time to head home.
“I’ve been coming to the camp since I was in diapers — a lot earlier than my mom would have preferred,” Theo says with a laugh. “It’s not true camping, but it’s as close as I’ll get.”
While it may sound a bit isolating, the owners of various camps in the Delta treat each other as true neighbors, waving across stretches of water just like streets.
“We try to develop relationships with other camp owners and members,” Theo explains. “It builds morale, and it’s always nice to look out for each other, whether it’s towing a boat or bringing oil to someone who’s out, building karma with each other, because it all comes back. One of our members even organizes a poker run among camps.”
Away from the camps, the river turns into narrow creeks lined with moss-covered cypress trees, and the wildlife is endless. “We see everything — ospreys, alligators, frogs, crickets, and the most fun thing to spot, bald eagles,” Theo says. “There are unlimited opportunities for hunting, fishing, frogging, etc.”
And while some may criticize Mobile for its lack of seasons, Theo believes they just need to spend some time in the Delta, where the seasonal changes are drastic.
“In the summer, the lotus blooms are incredible to see,” Theo says. “And you will always find a big crowd at Gravine Island, the redneck riviera of the Delta, where a large white beach has formed due to dredging. The water is shallow and warm, and it’s some of the best people watching you’ll find. In the fall, the waters are even busier with cooler temperatures and hunters. The fall and spring are usually when I visit the camp the most because the weather is best, but during the colder months, it’s a lot quieter, and that’s when I think it’s the most fun to bring people along to enjoy the area.”
While he may have his favorite seasons in the Delta, there is one day a week he doesn’t miss.
“On Sundays I’m usually up there from sun up to sun down,” Theo says. “It’s the best way to reset before the work week. It’s really a solemn place for me; I feel the most connected to nature there, and it’s where I feel the closest to God. I go a lot slower on the way home.”
But even at home, he is surrounded by reminders of the Runamuck Inn. When Theo and his wife, Anna, were searching for the perfect name for their new dog, a nod to this special place seemed appropriate, and Muck was born. A few years later, Theo and Anna would name their son after Theo’s namesake, his dad, and his lifeline to the Runamuck Inn.
“In 2011 my dad passed away from cancer, and on the tenth anniversary of his death, we spread his ashes in the Delta,” Theo recalls. “It’s a special place for my family. My grandfather was an OBGYN in town, but he spent a lot of time there. He instilled a love for it in my dad, who then did the same for me. Two years ago I carried on the diaper tradition and took our son, Ted, for his first ride on the river when he was one, the same age as I was on my first ride. I made sure to stop by the bend in the river where we left my dad. I looked up and saw an eagle perched in a tree right above the spot, and I knew my dad was there with us. I laughed and said, ‘Hey Ted, it’s Pop!’”
Following his dad’s death, Theo became the youngest of now eight men who share equal ownership of the camp. And he fully acknowledges what this responsibility means.
“I think we all have concerns for the future of this area,” Theo admits. “Right now I think rising tides are the biggest threat to our island, but thankfully we have great local organizations who care about the Delta. Mobile County Wildlife organizes trash pickups and builds wooden duck boxes for habitat preservation purposes, and Mobile Baykeeper drives the defense of our waters. I know I need to pull my own weight so that I can pass the camp down to my son, and he can pass it down to his children.”
As the Runamuck Inn nears its 70th birthday, Theo’s son, Ted, now two and a half years old, sits at the helm of the fourth generation to make that same ride upriver. And if he is anything like his dad, his grandfather, or his great grandfather, the Runamuck Inn will be in good hands for years to come.
