Marathon is a town in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in Thunder Bay District, on the north shore of Lake Superior north of Pukaskwa National Park, in the heart of the Canadian Shield. Geography Personal residences encompass an area starting from Lake Superior, and stretch out to a new subdivision near Penn Lake, an in-town campsite and beach in the eastern portion of the town. The Pic River is outside of the town's eastern limits. The town is adjacent to Peninsula Harbour and has several coves including Carden Cove, Sturdee Cove and Craddock Cove; all three are west-northwest of Marathon. Penn Lake is a local lake within the town where tourists can enjoy camping and water sports. Heron Bay is a town located to the south of Marathon, and shares the post office and phone prefix. The Pic River First Nation is on the outskirts of Pukaskwa National Park. Demographics In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada, Marathon had a population of living in of its total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of . With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. Economy and transportation Marathon's resource economy was built on pulp, most recently managed by Marathon Pulp Inc. On February 12, 2009, Marathon Pulp Inc. announced an indefinite shutdown that eliminated hundreds of jobs from the region, and negatively impacted Marathon's tax base and its local economy. Starting in the mid-1980s Marathon's economy expanded to include gold mining. The Hemlo Operations included three gold mining operations: Williams, David Bell and Golden Giant mines. In 2009, Vancouver-based Teck Cominco mining company sold its 50% share of Williams and David Bell to its investing partner, Barrick Gold Corporation, while Golden Giant was decommissioned in 2005. Golden Giant mine is now owned by Barrick Gold Corporation, and is now part of David Bell mine. Marathon is the centre of commerce for the rural region in which it is situated. It boasts the largest indoor shopping mall between Thunder Bay and Sault Ste. Marie, and one of only three Canadian Tire department stores in the region. Marathon is located west of Trans Canada Highway 17, to which it is connected via Peninsula Road (formerly Highway 626). The town is served by the Canadian Pacific Railway and a geographically important airport (Marathon Aerodrome) just north of the Trans-Canada Highway, approximately