Living in Marathon

Marathon’s quality of life blends small town, outdoor living with many of the amenities of urban life. Residents have access to all the basics including comprehensive healthcare services, bi-lingual public and high schools, access to post-secondary education including a Confederation College campus, high-speed gigabit fibre Internet, LTE wireless connectivity, affordable housing, and transportation corridors to Thunder Bay and Winnipeg in the west, and Sault Ste. Marie and Toronto in the south east along the Trans-Canada Highway.

There are many recreational activities as well. Fishing, hiking, hunting, and other outdoor activities are literally right outside your back door. The Trans-Canada Trail network runs right through town along the incredible North Shore coast on the Group of Seven Lake Superior trail. Pebble Beach in town has some of the most unique and memorable scenery Lake Superior has to offer, and is a must-see destination. Provincial and National parks are within a 30 minute drive. Marathon hosts a Stanley Thompson signature nine-hole golf course in town, and many maintained ATV, snowmobiling, and biking trails around the community. Additionally, residents enjoy a movie theatre, indoor swimming pool, indoor rink, and retail shopping.

Available Services

• Municipally-owned water and sewer systems
• Electricity (Hydro One)
• Propane (Superior Propane)
• Diesel Fuel Oil (Bluewave Energy & Davidson Fuels)
• Telecommunications – cell, landlines, Internet (Tbaytel, Bell, Shaw, Rogers, Telus)

Key Industries

• Mining
• Forestry
• Transportation/logistics
• Manufacturing
• Construction
• Healthcare
• Retail
• Education

Labour Force

Approximately 2,500 trained and skilled workers.

Road, Rail, and Air

Marathon is accessible by road along the Trans-Canada Highway (Hwy 17), by rail (Canadian Pacific Railways), and by air at the Marathon Municipal Airport (YSP). 

Shipping

Marathon’s waterfront is located within a natural harbour for port development – no breakwater required. The Town established the Marathon Port Authority established 2022.

Shipping from Marathon through the St. Lawrence Seaway would take less time than shipping from Thunder Bay, Ontario to the west (102 hours) or Chicago, Illinois, USA to the south (105 hours) to markets around the world. Raw materials could be shipped in from anywhere in the world, including the steel mills that dot the Great Lakes themselves. Similarly, manufactured products or raw materials could be shipped around the world or regionally – approximately 34 million people live within the Great Lakes Basin.