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Marathon Florida, the "HEART" of the Keys!
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As you leave Lower Matacumbe you pass thru a very narrow profile of Keys. Fiesta, Long, Conch, Duck, Tom’s Harbor, Grassy, Crawl, and Fat Deer Keys lead you into Vacca (cow) Key, home of Marathon Florida. Known as the “heart” of the Keys, Marathon Florida has a much more “built up” profile than the rest of the Keys (except for Key West).
Vacca Key and the city of Marathon Florida has many more people there year round. Residential build up has actually caused a halt to a couple of areas, which already had developed canals. Those developments have become a quite passage for kayaker’s. Marathon Florida has one of the few full hospitals up and down the keys. It has an air strip which services small jets and other small planes. It has a fishing fleet, which is not primarily a recreational fleet but rather a general commercial fleet. Marathon Florida has the feeling as being more commercial and “industrial”, if there is such a word down here. I can only imagine the lifeline Marathon Florida provides for the rest of the Keys. Not recognized, necessarily, as a final destination point for many but rather a living, breathing, necessary place to afford much of the rest of the keys to function and exist.
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It is unique to me. It has a couple of shopping centers, plumbing stores, all sorts of convenience and service stores. With a much denser population it has some of the finest homes, resorts, and every day types of activities we’ve become use to in our own home towns. Check out the Chamber of Commerce for up to the minute local information.
Marathon Florida, Vacca Key, has every bit of the same amount of water, parks, uniqueness, and charm that one expects up and down the Keys. There is just a little more hustle and bustle through this area. Take time to visit the Dolphin Research Center. Immerse your self in research, fun facts, swimming with dolphins, rescue techniques, presentations, and just all and all fun.
Crane Point Hammock mm50, just next door on Grassy Key, has one of the last virgin palm areas anywhere in North America. There you will find numerous endangered species of flora and fauna.
Vacca Key, Marathon Florida, was settled in the early 1800’s by sailors and fisherman from Mystic, Connecticut. Mystic, by the way, is where my Great Grandfather Captained and sailed into and out from Norway. There is a rather long heritage in the “every day” type of commercial fishing and the fishing docks. This area was also the home of many of the workers who worked the Overseas Railroad and Highway.
When you take many of the streets of Marathon Florida, which fishbone out towards the GS or OS you will find the laid back Key’s feeling all so common. Beaches and residential areas with sometimes, small bars and bistros.
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