Francis and Mary Crane purchased the hammock, the site of an early Bahamian settlement, in 1949. They added flowering tropical plants and orchids to the hammock.
Preserved from development in 1989 by the Florida Keys Land Trust, it is the largest tropical hammock in the Middle Keys.
The complex includes archaeological and historic sites, canoe and kayak rentals, a bird sanctuary and rehabilitation center, and a museum complete with an outdoor hands-on element for the kids.
The Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail slices through the US 1-facing portion of the property as well, with rest stops and parking possible.
Resources
Resources for exploring the area
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Overview
Location: Marathon
Trailhead: 24.716525,-81.075822
Fees: $14.95 adults, $12.95 seniors and military, $9.95 ages 5-13
Open Mon-Sat 9-5, Sun 12-5.
Location
About the Park
Ironically, this was the first site to be developed in the Keys. At the time, Marathon was known as Vaca Key, and Bahamian immigrants started a subsistence farming village here in the 1830s.
Hidden deep in the tropical hammock is the oldest remaining building on the island. On the National Register of Historic Places, the home was built of tabby in Bahamian style and completed in 1906.
George Adderly’s home became the focal point of a small African-American settlement called Adderly Town, which persisted on Vaca Key through the completion of the Overseas Railroad in the 1930s.
There are two museums at Crane Point Hammock. In the Museum of Natural History of the Florida Keys, walk through a replica reef, see a 600-year-old dugout canoe, and learn the gamut of Keys history, from its indigenous peoples through wreckers and “Flagler’s Folly.”
In the Children’s Museum, the kids will love the engaging outdoor exhibits that put them on the deck of a pirate ship or in a Native American village or railroad station, with touch tanks and an iguana house, too.
But the beauty of this park is how it immerses you in the outdoors.
Numerous interpretive trails wind through dense tropical hammock. The Palm Trail showcases a Florida thatch palm hammock with solution holes and unusual plants like the autograph tree, also known as pitch-apple, and joewood, an endemic slow-growing plant.
The Mangrove Trail leads you into a tunnel of mangroves along a boardwalk. Cultivated queen palms grow near the butterfly meadow, and tropical hammock surrounds you en route to the history Adderly House.
You can explore the park by tram or walk the forest roads out to the Sunset Boardwalk along Florida Bay, where you’ll find the Marathon Wild Bird Center, a wildlife rescue and rehab center.
Explore More!
Slideshow
See our photos of Crane Point Hammock
Nearby Adventures
More worth exploring while you’re in this area.
Overseas Heritage Trail, Middle Keys
43.6 miles. With the most island-hopping of the ride, the middle portion of the Florida Keys delights with its aquamarine waters and coconut palms, a very tropical vibe.
Sombrero Beach
At the southern tip of Marathon, Sombrero Beach offers beachgoers a natural strand and an easy beach walk within sight of the Keys’ largest lighthouse.
Curry Hammock State Park
Bring your binoculars for fall birding at Curry Hammock State Park, where migrating raptors cruise overhead by the hundreds following a major flyover route.
Grassy Key Trail
A pleasant piece of the Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail that is entirely a paved bike path, the Grassy Key Trail runs 4.4 linear miles through Curry Hammock State Park.