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Hike Bike Paddle Camp Florida with authors Sandra Friend and John Keatley as your guides

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Signs at Vaca Cut waterway

Marathon

Home to an airport, an aquarium attraction, and a natural sandy beach in the Middle Keys, Marathon is a central point for major services between Key Largo and Key West.


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Exploring Marathon

Settled in the 1830s by Bahamian immigrants who began farming on Vaca Key, Marathon is the most urban of the island centers, with department stores and an airport.

Much of the island is developed. But at its heart is Crane Point Hammock, 63 acres of natural tropical habitats owned by the Florida Keys Land & Sea Trust.

Whitewashed small house with wooden hurricane shutters Adderly House at Crane Point Hammock


It is inside this former botanical garden where remnants of the original Bahamian settlement of Adderly Village are preserved, including the first home built in the Florida Keys.

Marathon owes its explosive growth to the building of the Overseas Railroad. Workers camped out here to cross seven miles of open ocean with a railway trestle.

Parallel highways over ocean Fred the Tree on the Old Seven Mile Bridge from the new Seven Mile Bridge


The marathon of work they put in to complete the railroad on time gave this chain of thirteen islands its name.

Then came fishing. The piers of the Seven Mile Bridge created eddies that attracted tarpon, which in turn attracted sportsmen.

Giant fish statue Roadside art at an outfitter’s shop in Marathon


Fishing is big throughout the Keys, but especially throughout Marathon. Numerous outfitters crowd US 1, and dive shops are big as well.

The original Seven Mile Bridge has been supplanted by a modern span with shoulders, but remains in use as a walking / biking trail to Pigeon Key, where the workers lived.

To the north, the natural habitats of Grassy Key are largely protected by Curry Hammock State Park, the Florida Overseas Heritage Trail extending south through Marathon to the bridge.

Bike path in wooded corridor with signage Overseas Heritage Trail on Grassy Key


Trails and Parks in Marathon

Palms along iconic beachfront at Bahia Honda Key

Bahia Honda State Park

Bahia Honda State Park
Adderly House at Crane Point Hammock

Crane Point Hammock

Crane Point Hammock
Tropical rockland hammock

Curry Hammock Nature Trail

Curry Hammock Nature Trail
Picnic table in shade adjoining waterway

Curry Hammock State Park

Curry Hammock State Park
Shallow water with mangrove-lined islands beyond

Eastern Continental Trail

Eastern Continental Trail
Bike lane facing Caribbean blue waters in the Florida Keys

Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail

Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail
Golden Orb Trail

Golden Orb Trail

Golden Orb Trail
Grassy Key Trail signage

Grassy Key Trail

Grassy Key Trail
Layton Trail

Layton Trail

Layton Trail
Long Key State Park

Long Key State Park

Long Key State Park
Bridge broken in middle above aquamarine water

Old Bahia Honda Bridge Trail

Old Bahia Honda Bridge Trail

Overseas Heritage Trail, Middle Keys

Overseas Heritage Trail, Middle Keys
Clumps of coastal vegetation on Bahia Honda Key

Silver Palm Trail

Silver Palm Trail
Sombrero Beach

Sombrero Beach

Sombrero Beach

Articles

Key Deer

The Future of Florida’s Key Deer

August 21, 2019//  by Sandra Friend

A public meeting by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service on August 22, 2019 is the first step in informing the public of the potential of Key deer being removed from the Endangered Species List.

Overseas Heritage Trail

The Florida Keys, Revisited

June 29, 2018//  by Sandra Friend

Nine months after Hurricane Irma, we headed to the Florida Keys to see how both the infrastructure and the natural areas are healing. Here’s an overview of what we found, from Key West to Key Largo.

Curry Hammock Trail

Paradise, Palms, & Mosquitoes

September 9, 2006//  by Sandra Friend

My first exploration on the hiking trails of Marathon lead to thatch palm hammocks: the Curry Hammock Nature Trail at Curry Hammock State Park, and the trails of Crane Point Hammock, including the beautiful Palm Hammock Trail.


NEARBY: Big Pine Key, Islamorada | ALONG: Atlantic Ocean, Florida Bay, Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail | PART OF: Florida Keys

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Florida National Scenic Trail (1,500 miles), the Florida Keys Overseas Heritage Trail (108 miles), and the ECT Florida Connector (92 miles).

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Our recent park & trail updates in this region

Broad sand road through sandhill habitat

Atlantic Ridge Preserve State Park

Atlantic Ridge Preserve State Park
Well worn path through a wet pine flatwoods landscape

DuPuis Loop Trail

DuPuis Loop Trail
Bike along bike path in greenway

East Coast Greenway Stuart

East Coast Greenway Stuart
Nature trail in pine-palm forest

Gomez Preserve

Gomez Preserve

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