Visiting Marathon

February 25, 2022

Chris and Heather talk to Linda Beranek, President of the Marathon Chamber of Commerce, about visiting Alpine’s sister to the East. From the Gage Hotel to the Post Park, and all of the restaurants, gardens, galleries and shops in between!

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TRANSCRIPT for “Visiting Marathon”:

Chris Ruggia
Hello. Welcome, and thank you for joining us again for the Heart of the Big Bend. This is a podcast and radio show coming to you every other week about visiting the beautiful Big Bend of Texas. Specifically, we cover what’s happening in Alpine, an incredibly friendly small town nestled in a desert mountain Valley at the heart of the Big Bend region. With easy day trips from Alpine, you can take in everything this amazing region has to offer. I’m Chris Ruggia, Director of Tourism for the City of Alpine and joined with me today, much missed for a while, is Heather Yadon from the Alpine Visitor Center.

Heather Yadon
Hello, everyone.

Chris R
And we’re thrilled to have Linda Beranek, the President of the Marathon Chamber of Commerce. We’ve had a couple of previous episodes talking about Martha and Fort Davis and our other sister communities, and we’re really happy to get to talk a little bit about what’s going on and what people can experience half an hour east of us on Highway 90.

Linda B
Yes. Well, thank you, Chris. I appreciate the opportunity. I sort of think that Marathon is the unknown quantity. And of course, I love it. And I think it’s amazing. I was able to meet with a couple of representatives from the National Park Association a couple of weeks ago, and they were just stunned. We took them on a tour of Marathon and they were like, wow, I didn’t know we had all this stuff available here. It’s a neat place. Yeah.

Chris R
Well, it’s a very small place. And just so folks know, if you’re coming in from the east, then historically, 90 was the highway…

Heather Y
Yeah. We get visitors that come from Del Rio way through Marathon towards the Big Bend.

Chris R
And these days, of course, I-10 is a much more traveled corridor East-West. But if you’re coming from San Antonio, say, on Highway 90, you’re going to come through Marathon about 26 miles before you get to Alpine. And it’s right after the turn south to Big Bend National Park. Is that 385? Yeah. Also, when you’re on I-10, when you’re coming into town at Fort Stockton, you can kind of take your pick. You can take 385 also down to Marathon or you can take 67 and then you’ll hit closer to Alpine. So that’s kind of the geographical picture.

Heather Y
One of the first questions I always get asked is, “How do you say it?” Because whenever I say it, I say, of course, Marathon, which I only say correctly because my husband was born and raised here. And has corrected me. But so many visitors are like, “So it’s not Marathon. We’ve been saying it wrong the whole time.”

Linda B
Well, I was told early on when I got my Casa in 2005, it’s Marathon. We do not say Marathon. That’s the race that we have in October.

Chris R
Right, The Marathon to Marathon.

Heather Y
Yeah, I always get questions about the pronunciation. I say I just say it the way my husband, who’s lived here his whole life, does.

Chris R
In recent times, the anchor of the town, for the visitor, anyway, has got to be the Gage Hotel, which is one of this kind of almost like a Crown of Jewels through the Big Bend, is the Trost hotels. We’ve got the Paisano in Marfa, El Capitan in Van Horn, the Holland Hotel in Alpine and the Gage in Marathon. They’re all a little bit different, but they share that architectural sensibility and the Gage, almost more than any of the others, has expanded, developed, a family of other businesses – and because it’s isolated in a way that the other hotels aren’t.

Heather Y
There’s so much downtown that is part of the Gage, which I’m sure you can tell.

Linda B
Yeah, the Gage began in 1927 and it has just expanded exponentially. There’s the Twelve Gage restaurant, which is a fabulous place and it has expanded and because there’s so many people that want to eat there. They also have the V-6 Coffee Bar, which is next door. And you can get the eight-dollar coffee if you want to. You can get everything else as well. Across the street, they have the Brick Vault Brewery and Barbecue.

Linda B
Which we have to shout out Amy Oxenham, Alpine native, who’s the brewmaster over there. We’re thrilled with her success.

Heather Y
And she won the Sam Adams Award for brewing.

Linda B
Well, it’s a great place. And I went there last weekend and they were standing in line to get the barbecue. And then, of course, there’s the White Buffalo Bar, which was written up by Texas Monthly as one of the top hotel bars in Texas. And everybody loves to go there.

And they’ve added on in the back of the Buffalo Bar, an outside venue now that I think they’re going to be opening, maybe already have. But yeah, they also have this amazing gift shop. It’s called the V-6 Collection, and it has jewelry and pottery and art. And so if you’re looking for a gift to take back home, you’ll probably be able to find it there.

They also have the Gage Gardens.

Chris R
Yeah. Which are just beautiful.

Linda B
They are just beautiful. And it’s just a short walk across the railroad tracks, and then there’s a large area behind that, and that’s a dog park. And people can take their pets and let them run free.

Chris R
Gage Gardens are pretty interesting because often when you’re out in the desert – it’s not like CDRI, the Chihuahuan Desert Research Institute and Nature Center, where they have an Arboretum and native plantings. And this is not that. There are a lot of small and some very elaborate formal plantings. So it’s really an architectural, aesthetic experience as much as a nature experience.

Heather Y
And that’s someplace that even if people aren’t staying at the Gage, they can go and walk the gardens and visit because during our busy times of the year, the Gage can only hold so many people. So people want to still see it. And they can absolutely do that even if they’re not staying at the hotel, to go toward the garden.

Linda B
And they just added a wellness spa. They did have one and they’ve moved it and updated it. So there’s a lot to do at the Gage Hotel.

Chris R
So there’s a couple of different things that you mentioned in terms of the Gage. One was restaurants and one was shopping. So, what’s the overview of Marathon for food outside the Gage?

Linda B
Well, there are a lot of cool places that you can go and eat. There’s a pizza place just when you come in on 90, and it’s all their homemade pizza, and you can call them up and you can tell them exactly what you want on that pizza, and that’s what you get. So that’s really cool.

If you’re looking for real home cooking, go to the Oasis Restaurant and they have a great breakfast and it’s just like, like walking into mom’s kitchen. That’s really nice.

Heather Y
Your local cafe, your little diner.

Linda B
…like walking into mom’s kitchen. So that’s really nice.

And then we have the French Company Grocer where you can go, and the chef there does quiche and lots of wonderful salads and homemade sandwiches and there’s a selection of grocery items as well.

Chris R
So now most of the time is that kind of pick up and go kind of stuff?

Linda B
Pretty much.

Heather Y
It’s a great shop as you head down to the big bend to grab picnic stuff for the day. If you stop by French Grocer they can help you pack up a little lunch to take with you into the park because your food options get more limited as you get away from our towns. So yeah, they have tamales in there all the time and empanadas…

Linda B
And burritos, and they’re all homemade.

Linda B
Yeah. You definitely want to look for their calendar of events when you’re coming into town because they do have occasional brunches and things like that. I know every second Sunday there’s a group of musicians – mostly, but not al,l from Alpine – that actually come over and play. It’s called the Old Rugged Choir, it’s a big old country gospel combo. But the French company host that, and they do a brunch – they have that grill outside and they’re cooking breakfast tacos and omelets, and the sauces are so good it’s amazingly good.

Heather Y
And amazing music.

Linda B
It just makes you want to get up and jump up and down. It does.

Heather Y
You want to clap in the aisles.

Linda B
You do! It’s all those old songs that I grew up on, going to Church as a kid.

Chris R
Yeah, so that’s like midday, second Sundays of the month, when the weather is good – because they took a little time off for the winter.

Linda B
And then every Friday night, depending on the weather, the French Company has burger nights.

Chris R
Oh, great.

Linda B
And that’s really fun. Everybody looks forward to that. And you just roll in, and usually it starts out five now because it gets dark earlier. In the summer, it’s usually six. And you have a selection of maybe eight to ten different, really classy, burgers. And they make their own homemade potato chips, whatever beer or wine you’d like to have or water, or… It’s a really cool event.

Chris R
Yeah. And they definitely have occasional other musical events. I know they’ve done some tribute shows for different musicians. They did John Prime Night a few months ago and a lot of different players from the area. So, yeah, be on the lookout for those things.

Now, when we’re walking around downtown, and we’re at the French Company, and I’m looking across the street, I see E. Dan Klepper’s gallery right there, who’s an amazing photographer. What are the other arts and shops and things as you’re walking around downtown?

Linda B
I want to say that if anybody wants to know what’s going on in Marathon, we have just totally redone our website.

Chris R
Oh, great.

Linda B
And so it’s just MarathonTexas.com, and it will tell you everything you need to know about food, lodging, artists, everything. But as you mentioned, Dan Klepper’s studio is right across from the French Grocer, and he has a little sign outside, so you’ll know when he’s open.

And you really need to go on his website and read about the things he’s done. I mean, it’s just unbelievable, all the places that he has exhibited. And so he’s a wonderful resident. And then, James Evans.

Chris R
I was about to say, we can’t bring up Dan and not bring up James. Yeah. He’s kind of the classic Big Bend photographer. He’s made his life here capturing images. I think he moved here in the 70s, I’m wanting to say, it’s in that ballpark maybe early 80s.

Linda B
I think so, and I remember reading that he came out just for a few days and saw that somebody was hiring a cook…

Chris R
At the Gage! He cooked at the Gage very briefly.

Linda B
That’s how he started living in the area.

Chris R
And so then he really built his career,  just being down at the park. So much of it originally was landscape photographs. he took some of the most iconic Big Bend photographic landscapes. But I would say that his heart is in portraiture, probably. And so he’s captured, through this time he’s been here, so many of the people, and really just amazing moments. He’s really got that feeling for the person that he’s taking the picture for. So you can’t miss James Evans’ gallery when you’re there. Yeah.

Linda B
And then as you’re going past the brick vault, there’s this funky store called the Rusty Rabbit. And it has a lot of antiques. It also has some local art in it. And Cathy, who owns the place, is an amazing artist herself.

Chris R
Right.

Linda B
And it’s right by the post office. And it just has a lot of unique things that you probably wouldn’t find anywhere else.

Chris R
Yeah. And now this has the rabbit painted on the front. Yeah. By Mary Baxter. She painted that back when she was in town.

Linda B
Yeah. So lots of fun places.

Chris R
Absolutely.

Heather Y
And then, of course, the kind of thing that also draws people to Marathon is your dark skies. And you guys have an amazing opportunity for people to see dark skies if they want a more personal experience in the Big Bend. Can you tell us about that, at the Marathon Motel?

Linda B
I would love to do that. Marathon has been listed as having the darkest eyes in the United States.

Chris R
Wow.

Linda B
And we’re so lucky to have Danny Self, who owns the Marathon Motel. And he has, over time, set up his own telescopes. And he has Star Parties on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, depending on the weather. And a lot of people don’t know that. You can just walk in, and if Danny’s there or Bill Ramey, they’ll just set you up.

Chris R
That’s something I really want to point out, that the Observatory’s, McDonald’s Observatory, Star Parties are famous. And there is a waiting list for these reservations. And so you absolutely want to experience that, but – Danny and Bill know what they’re doing. They’ve invested so much time and passion in looking up at the stars. I won’t say it’s a replacement, but it’s its own thing. And it’s so worth checking out. And as you point out, you can do it without having to reserve four months in advance.

Linda B
Another thing that over the years Danny has made happen is there, is a whole group of astrophotographers that visit the Marathon Motel. And he actually, in the back of his property, has an Observatory which is full of telescopes that the astrophotographers have placed there. And then they come out and take photographs. And one of the guys that comes out a lot, Matt Harbison, he took some photographs at the Sky Park, and one of his was featured on January 11 as the NASA Astronomy Photo of the Day. I mean, that’s pretty amazing.

And these same people have just got the astronomy world buzzing because they’re building a sky map of the deep sky. And Marathon is going to be sort of the epicenter of the they call it the Marathon Sky Survey.

Chris R
Wow.

Linda B
So this is remarkable stuff. It really is.

Heather Y
And you guys are celebrating dark skies coming up, correct?

Linda B
Well, we were going to have a celebration during the International Dark Sky Month, which is April. And we wanted to do it on the new moon weekend, but we found out that McDonald Observatory is doing a huge initial celebration that same time, and, you know, it didn’t make sense for us to try and do that when they have their event planned. So we’re looking at a new moon event, maybe in May.

Chris R
Okay, great.

Linda B
We’ll get that out. But everybody wants to support the McDonald Observatory.

Linda B
Well, folks should definitely go to MarathonTexas.com and get the latest on the dates for when you select those. What other events are kind of signature things for Marathon, do you think?

Linda B
Well, of course, the M2M.

Chris R
The Marathon to Marathon.

Linda B
Yes, it is. And it’s a precursor to the Boston Marathon. I believe it’s the 22nd of October this year.

Chris R
Yeah, it’s usually a little earlier in the month.

Linda B
And I apologize. I could be wrong about that date.

Chris R
MarathonTexas.com!

Linda B
And it draws a huge amount of folks from everywhere, as well as a lot of the locals volunteer, and some of them walk, or we have a lady that rides a bike and she rides that in the marathon. And Ruben, our County Commissioner, just this past Saturday, had the fish Fry.

Chris R
Oh, okay.

Linda B
And that’s always a big thing for everybody. Ruben puts it on and people donate cakes. And I was told that a cake there sold for about $500.

Chris R
Oh, wow, okay.

Linda B
Of course, all that he uses to make Marathon a better place, and the Post Park.

Heather Y
Yeah, we haven’t even talked about the Post yet.

Chris R
I know you can’t miss that. So that’s a bit of a drive away from town. You’re basically turning south at Avenue D. And that’s going to turn into the Post Park Road. And I believe it’s about 5 miles down, and the road gets littler and littler and you might start wondering what’s happening, but you eventually get to a gate and you see the water and the picnic tables, and really that water – and the trees obviously around it – but that water is really kind of the main event.

Heather Y
It is one of the only fishing spots in the area. Great bird watching out there.

Linda B
I drove out there last Saturday with my dog. We saw wild turkeys, we saw deer. And then when we got out there, here’s this little guy, he’s in his cowboy boots and he’s got his fishing pole, and he’s out there with his dad trying to – and of course, the ducks, everybody feeds the ducks. So it’s a wonderful family place.

Chris R
And the setting is just beautiful. There’s a little concrete dam that holds this tiny little reservoir with just a beautiful hill behind it. And you’ve got these gorgeous old shade trees all over the place. It’s really just pastoral. It is a lovely place.

Heather Y
It’s a little Oasis in the middle of the desert out there.

Linda B
And they have a big 4th of July dance there, that’s always a fun thing.

Chris R
Yeah. And then I guess there’s the Big Bend Open Road Race. Is that between Fort Stockton and Marathon still or did they change that route?

Linda B
You know, I’m not really knowledgeable about that. I think they still are doing that.

Chris R
Yeah, I hear about it from Fort Stockton, but historically it had gone to Marathon, but I’m not sure where that’s at. So it’s going to Sanderson now. Apologies to everyone in the world for that mistake. Thanks, Martin.

I also think of Fiesta de Noche Buena.

Linda B
Yes, we do that the first weekend in December. The Chamber helps coordinate, but it really is just all of the businesses and anybody else that wants to set up a table on the main drag there. And it starts about six in the evening. And this past December, we had live music, some of our local musicians that play in the gospel as well. They sat up and played music all night, and Santa and Mrs. Claus come in and they set up at the TransPecos Bank and all the kids get their picture taken. And it’s just the typical small town event. And it’s just the best.

Chris R
Well, I think we’re about to need to wrap up, and I’ll give you a chance to sum up or give any last thoughts. But one thing I wanted to share is that Marathon is such a small town and it’s surrounded by this vast landscape. That’s something where, unlike Alpine and Marfa, both of those places are kind of too big to really feel like you’re in the landscape while you’re in town. And the thing that has always struck me there is that the light at sunset has a completely different feeling and character in Marathon. Anyway, it’s kind of like a rosy color and I don’t know what causes it, but it just feels different there than anywhere else I’ve ever been.

Linda B
It is different, I think, because it is a small town. And as you say, we’re not surrounded by any other villages or anything. I grew up in Nebraska in a small town, and I had ten in my graduating class. Well, our Lady Mustangs in Marathon, they had like six or seven girls, and they ended up going to play in the county. And we’re working to go to the state and the whole town gets involved. That’s the cool thing. We love the tourists, but the locals are a big deal, too. There’s that small town values, I think.

Chris R
You bet.

Linda B
Yeah. And you can wander all over the place, and almost everywhere you go, you’re going to see something really cool.

Chris
I think that kind of sums it up right there. Thank you so much, Linda, for coming to talk with us.

Linda B
Thank you, for inviting me. I appreciate it.

Chris R
Well, we love our neighbors for sure out here. So thanks, everybody, for joining us again. We’ll be back with you two Fridays from now. You can get more information about Heart of the Big Bend at visitalpinetx.com/podcast. Or you can search for Heart of the Big Bend on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or most other podcast apps. You can get more info about visiting the area at visitalpinetx.com and marathontexas.com. So thanks everybody. We’ll see you in two weeks.