Lace up your sneakers or hiking boots and head outdoors for 10 nice walks for spring.
PHOTO BY CHUCK BEARD
Editor’s Note: This listing was first revealed in April 2017.
Winter is over. Spring has begun to bloom. It’s time to put away the parka, grab the sunscreen and head outdoors to experience Pittsburgh and the encompassing area in all of its glory: metropolis sidewalks, city green areas, repurposed land, the nice broad open. It’s historical past in your individual backyard, an art-inspired stroll outside of your office door, a tranquil oasis five minutes from Downtown or hours away from everyone. An hour during lunchtime. Day trips. Overnight excursions. Best of all, they’re free: a mile or 5 or 20 of sensory experiences that lure you around the bend or deep into the woods.
Each route connects you with a special space — some familiar, some new — that individually represents the synergy of tradition and innovation that has propelled this section of western Pennsylvania into some of the livable. Meticulously and thoughtfully maintained, most of the hiking trails have come into existence because of a corps of devoted volunteers. Others symbolize collective efforts years within the making. Within town itself, nonprofit organizations such because the Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation and Friends of the Riverfront have confirmed that walkability is more than only a buzzword — it’s the gateway to getting you in step with the humanities, the culture, the neighborhoods and the individuals who collectively symbolize a slice of Pittsburgh life.
So, go on — grab the significant different, convey along the youngsters, leash the canine. Go solo. Tag together with a pal. Take a breather to unwind, explore and take in. It doesn’t matter should you stroll it, run it or hike it. Choose your personal journey, and prepare for the great outside.
BEST WATERFALLS
Rise of the Falls
OHIOPYLE
PHOTO BY CHUCK BEARD
Considered to be two of the crown jewels of the 20,500-acre Ohiopyle State Park, Ohiopyle and Cucumber Falls could be accessed through a 3-mile loop that makes up the Rise of the Falls self-guided hike. Pop into the visitor’s center at the trailhead for a complete guide that explains the geological tug of warfare between water and rock that’s responsible for the creation of these shimmering beauties. One of the exceptional elements of Cucumber Falls: You can stroll beneath it through a big rock ledge. The trail itself follows an old rail bed that when delivered coal from the city of Stonerville to Western Maryland Railway vehicles. Today, that trail is lush with old-growth timber: hemlock, chestnut, oak and beech, and in springtime it yields an abundance of wildflowers.
Trailhead
124 Main St., Ohiopyle, Fayette County
Level of Difficulty
Easy
Dog-Friendly?
Yes
Kid-Friendly?
Yes
Mileage
3 miles
Don’t miss
Daredevils can cool off by taking a plunge down Meadow Run, a number of hundred toes of pure waterslides that cut a slender gorge within the rock. Exercise excessive caution: When water ranges are high, the current could be very swift.
Learn extra:dcnr.state.pa.us/stateparks/findapark/ohiopyle
BEST SNEAK PEAK
North Country National Scenic Trail
BUTLER COUNTY
PHOTO BY CHUCK BEARD
Designated as the longest national scenic trail in America, the North Country National Scenic Trail stretches more than 4,600 miles from Adirondack Park in japanese New York to Lake Sakakawea within the northern middle of North Dakota. Lest your schedule not permit an prolonged tour, take pleasure in a snack-sized outing that winds its method via the northern tip of Butler County. Skirting alongside Lake Arthur in Moraine State Park and through Jennings Environmental Nature Reserve, you’ll expertise a superb slice of American topography as you move by lakes, beaver ponds, farms and forests, as well as the surge of Slippery Rock Creek Gorge because it churns by way of McConnells Mill State Park. Created 1000’s of years in the past as glacial lakes started to drain, McConnells Mill at present is considered by many to be a pure national landmark. One factor to remember: The trail doesn’t loop, so you’ll should hike again to where you started. Maps can be found on-line.
Trailhead
Hells Hollow, McConnells Mill State Park
Level of Difficulty
Varies according to topography
Dog-Friendly?
Varies
Kid-Friendly?
Varies
Mileage
15 miles
Don’t miss
On the northern shore of Moraine State Park, you can see the historic Davis Hollow Cabin. Construction of the hand-hewn log and hand-carved stone construction started prior to the start of the American Revolution. It’s been lovingly restored and maintained by volunteers of the Davis Hollow North Country Trail Committee. Obtain permission by calling 724/ , and you’ll be welcome to relaxation your soles and stay for the night.
Learn more:northcountrytrail.org
BEST URBAN STROLL
August Wilson: Pittsburgh Places in His Life and Plays
HILL DISTRICT
PHOTO BY LAURA PETRILLA
Walk a mile — 5 really — in the sneakers of Pittsburgh son and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright August Wilson, passing websites that impressed roles in his Pittsburgh Cycle. Meticulously mapped by the Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation, your journey begins at Freedom Corner at Centre Avenue and Crawford Street. Used since the Nineteen Sixties as an assembly level to march in support of social justice, the nook presents a superb view of the once-vibrant industrial heart of the Lower Hill. At the location of the previous Mellon Arena, Bedford, Wylie and Centre avenues once intersected with Logan and Fullerton streets; Logan is considerably referenced in seven of Wilson’s performs. From there, you’ll hit 35 extra factors of interest, some designated by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission markers. Highpoints include Wilson’s childhood residence at 1727 Bedford Ave., underneath renovation for use as a neighborhood arts and leisure middle; and Crawford Grill No. 2, the famend jazz club the place an electrifying performance in 1966 by saxophonist John Coltrane left Wilson with what he known as “one of essentially the most exceptional moments of my life.”
Trailhead
Corner Monument, Centre Avenue and Crawford Street
Level of Difficulty
Easy
Dog-Friendly?
Yes
Kid-Friendly?
Yes
Mileage
5 miles
Don’t miss
2172 Wylie Ave., the location of the former Eddie’s Restaurant. The rear sales space served as a meeting place for Wilson and a coterie of creative friends, and it’s where he reportedly conceived the concept of “Jitney,” the primary of his Pittsburgh Cycle performs.
Learn more:phlf.org/product/august-wilson-pittsburgh-places-in-his-life-and-plays/
BEST OVERNIGHT HIKE
Gerard Hiking Trail
OIL CREEK STATE PARK
PHOTO BY CHUCK BEARD
Test your survival expertise by packing up your gear for an in a single day hike that will take you along the east and west sides of the Oil Creek Valley, a looping trail that passes scenic overlooks, steep hillsides, wetlands and seasonal waterfalls. Nature has reclaimed a lot of the former drilling areas in the area, providing a glimpse at how its beauty bloomed wild earlier than the oil growth of 1859. You’ll still see the historic Drake Well on the northern finish of the park. It was named after Col. Edwin Drake, who oversaw the drilling of the world’s first profitable business oil properly. No need to rush. Pre-pay a nominal payment to reserve charming, rustic Adirondack-style shelters that offer respite for up to 4 weary travelers for one-night stays. Their stone fireplaces provide heat and the opportunity to savor open-range cooking, and water is offered in spring and summer time. Communal metal bear boxes maintain your snack supply from luring curious wild visitors. Maps are available online.
Trailhead
1080 Petroleum Centre Road, Oil City, Venango County
Level of Difficulty
Moderate to Difficult
Dog-Friendly?
Yes (state legal guidelines apply)
Kid-Friendly?
Varies
Mileage
36 miles
Don’t miss
Miller Farm, Shaffer Farm, the Pioneer and Petroleum Centre, and Boughton, sites that played pivotal roles within the early drilling days. Keep an eye out for old oil barrels and machinery frozen in time. Also, the fly fishing is said to be super.
Learn extra:dcnr.state.pa.us/stateparks/findapark/oilcreek
BEST UNDER-THE-RADAR-LESSON
Kane Woods Nature Area
SCOTT TOWNSHIP
PHOTO BY CHUCK BEARD
Crippled with the debt of the Revolutionary War, U.S. President George Washington instituted a whiskey tax in 1794 and entrusted his good buddy, Gen. John Neville, with the task of accumulating it from native farmers. Furious at the prospect of their primary type of revenue being depleted, the farmers shaped an offended mob, descended upon Neville’s property on Bower Hill and burned his mansion and other buildings to the bottom.
When word got again to Washington, he dispatched a few troops — thirteen,000 to be exact — to combat what became often recognized as the Whiskey Rebellion. A historical marker near the two miles of trails of this 72-acre nature space in Scott Township commemorates the infamous march of the “Whiskey Boys.”
The Scott Conservancy manages the property, the most important space of greenspace that remains in Scott Township. As temperatures rise, keep an eye fixed out for mayapples, vibrant native wildflowers and the occasional wild turkey passing by. Trail maps are available online or on the Whiskey Point trailhead (1461 Scrubgrass Road) and two others.
Trailhead
1461 Scrubgrass Road, Scott Township
Level of Difficulty
Easy to Moderate
Dog-Friendly?
Yes (2-dog maximum per person)
Kid-Friendly?
Yes
Mileage
2 miles, plus another ¾ mile of trail that has but to be formally marked
Don’t miss
The Mother Tree, an unlimited purple oak approximately fifty two inches in diameter on the JCC Trail; the state forestry department formally dates it at years old.
Learn more:scottconservancy.org/kane.htm
Related:
Walk the Burgh Tours
Whether you’re strolling major arteries or discreet alleyways, Walk the Burgh Tours (walktheburgh.com) presents a dwelling history lesson in regards to the city’s cultural and historic landmarks, public art spaces and a couple of example of jaw-dropping structure that highlights the many layers of our city’s wealthy and various heritage. Along the means in which, you’ll even be popping into various buildings, together with the Frick, Omni William Penn Hotel and Union Trust, as you wind by way of the cultural and monetary districts to Point State Park and the Golden Triangle. In the spring, look for the debut of a Downtown Architecture Tour and Public Art Tour.
Details: Tours are provided day by day at eleven a.m. and/or 3 p.m. $19/2 hours.
Meeting Point: 500 Ross St., Downtown (corner of Ross Street and Fifth Avenue)
Reservations: 412/ or
Also:
Acclaimed journey author and Sewickley native Brandon Wilson has conquered distant trails, retraced non secular pilgrimages and scaled mountain peaks whereas hiking in almost a hundred nations everywhere in the world. You can read his story right here.
BEST PLACE TO SPREAD YOUR WINGS
Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve
FOX CHAPEL
PHOTO BY CHUCK BEARD
Spread your wings a mere 10 miles outside of town at the Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve in Fox Chapel. Headquarters of the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania, the 134-acre reserve is open to the public from dawn to nightfall seven days a week, one year a yr, and it guarantees to attach people with nature. Depending on the season, chances are good you’ll see or hear all kinds of the multiple species of birds that nest here: Mallards and Canadian Geese congregate across the pond with turtles and frogs, Indigo Buntings, Cardinals, Blue Jays, Red-shouldered Hawks, Scarlet Tanagers, Eastern Phoebes, Red-bellied Woodpeckers and Red-winged Blackbirds. Keep an eye out for the ample wildlife, too. Those requiring handicap accessibility can benefit from the portion of Spring Hollow Trail that extends from the primary constructing to the pond. Trail maps can be found onsite or online.
Trailhead
614 Dorseyville Road, Fox Chapel
Level of Difficulty
Easy
Dog-Friendly?
No
Kid-Friendly?
Yes
Mileage
3.four miles
Don’t miss
The Treetop, a canopy-level deck that extends from the hillside along Spring Hollow Trail and presents sweeping views of the topography.
Learn more:aswp.org
BEST BLOOMS
Raccoon Creek State Park Wildflower Reserve
INDEPENDENCE TOWNSHIP
PHOTO BY LAURA PETRILLA
A wide range of seven-hundred species of wildflowers has been recorded on this 314-acre section of the park positioned alongside Raccoon Creek; the growth happens due to a confluence of habitats in a relatively small space that embrace floodplains, hardwood forests of sycamore and oak-hickory as nicely as pine forests, meadows and recovering farm land. Although they’re current throughout the growing season, blooms are at their peak from late April by way of early May and once more from August via early September. On the heels of winter, the spring thaw will produce buds of trilliums and bluebells earlier than summer brings forth crimson torches of iron weed and vigorous splashes of Joe-Pye weed. Cooling temps yield to vibrantly wealthy fall foliage. The hike is considered to be comparatively simple; you must descend (and then ascend) the next elevation to entry the creek, however, so expect to get your heart pumping. After that, it’s cake. Maps can be found online.
Trailhead
Jennings Trail, 482 Route 30, Independence Township, Beaver County
Level of Difficulty
Easy to Moderate
Dog-Friendly?
No
Kid-Friendly?
Yes
Mileage
5 miles
Don’t miss
Shafer’s Rock. Accessible from the high elevation of Audubon Trail, the overlook provides outstanding views of the floodplain and horseshoe bend in Raccoon Creek.
Learn more:dcnr.state.pa.us/stateparks/findapark/raccooncreek/wildflowerreserve/index.htm
BEST OASIS IN THE CITY
Riverview Park
NORTH SIDE
PHOTO BY LAURA PETRILLA
A lot of things in this 259-acre park will go away an impression, however the seclusion could make the most lasting one. While you’re walking alongside 10.6 tranquil miles of densely wooded trails, a reasonably challenging topography of steep hillsides intertwining with open valleys makes it onerous to believe you’re mere miles from the urban epicenter of Downtown. In the northern section of the park, simply south of Perry Traditional Academy, the Archery, Snowflake and Wildflower trails wind through forests of enormous sugar maples and jap hemlocks believed to be around a hundred years old. In the spring, ephemeral wildflowers, together with Dutchman’s breeches, Virginia bluebells and Toothwort, bloom. In the Western section, Snyder’s Point Trail loops round gently rolling meadows, offering a superb vantage point of the Ohio River after the lack of fall foliage. The trails themselves tend to not get too crowded, although you shouldn’t be stunned on the numbers of wildlife together with deer and wild turkey that will cross your path. If you get drained, take a breather on certainly one of many rock benches along the way. Maps are available online.
Trailhead
Mairdale Parking Lot, intersection of Mairdale and Woods Run avenues
Level of Difficulty
Moderate
Dog-Friendly?
Yes (leashed)
Kid-Friendly?
Varies
Mileage
10.6 miles
Don’t miss
The Allegheny Observatory (pitt.edu/~aobsvtry), run by the University of Pittsburgh, is likely considered one of the world’s major astronomy-research institutions. Time your trek to coincide with one of many free public tours held on Thursday and Friday evenings from April through November. On a clear night, your tour will end with a viewing of the numerous celestial
objects that hang overhead.
Learn extra:pittsburghparks.org/riverview-park
BEST URBAN EXCURSION
Three Rivers Heritage Trail
ALLEGHENY COUNTY
PHOTO BY LAURA PETRILLA
There’s no higher approach to savor a slice of Pittsburgh than by experiencing it through a quantity of neighborhoods. Park your automotive free of charge on the South Shore Riverfront Park and make your method down East Carson Street before crossing the Smithfield Street Bridge to Downtown. Loop around the Point and proceed towards the tenth Street Water Feature at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center. There, the walkway descends nearly 20 toes from road level and meanders by way of a sequence of fountain pools. The Rachel Carson Bridge will take you to the North Shore, the place artwork enthusiasts can proceed their inspired trek as they benefit from the public artwork plazas, including Ned Smyth’s Piazza Lavoro within the lately restored Allegheny Landing. Listen for the crack of a bat at PNC Park. Rent a kayak from Venture Outdoors beneath the Sixth Street Bridge. Catch glimpses of our strong industrial heritage from the Millvale part while keeping a watch out for rowers gliding across the Allegheny River. You’ll see Bloomfield rising on the hill above Lawrenceville and sweeping views of the Downtown skyline. Choose your individual adventure by cherry-picking your route or following the trail in its entirety through Chateau, the Strip District, Panther Hollow, Hazelwood, Duquesne Heights and Baldwin Borough. Maps can be found online.
Trailhead
South Shore Riverfront Park, South Side
Level of Difficulty
Easy to Moderate
Dog-Friendly?
Yes
Kid-Friendly?
Yes
Mileage
24 miles
Don’t miss
An amazing vantage level to capture a solar rising or setting over the Golden Triangle can be seen between Heinz Field and PNC Park on the North Shore section of the trail.
Learn more:traillink.com/trail/three-rivers-heritage-trail.aspx
BEST VIEWS
Grandview Avenue
MOUNT WASHINGTON
PHOTO BY LAURA PETRILLA
What’s not to love about this bird’s-eye view of the city’s beautiful skyline? From considered one of Pittsburgh’s highest elevation factors, you’ll take pleasure in awe-inspiring views to the north, east and west — a sight much more spectacular as the sun goes down and lights turn on. There’s a lot to see by walking the whole thing of the avenue, together with photo opps at one of many four overlooks, rides on the Monongahela and Duquesne inclines, and a pit stop at the 24-hour chapel of the St. Mary of the Mount church. A bench and kneeler enable you to view the stained glass and architecture of this historic parish 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Grandview’s rolling topography ensures you’ll feel the burn as you crest a couple of hills along the way, but no worries should you begin to really feel famished. Grab a chew to eat at any number of restaurants there or within the Shiloh Street corridor.
Trailhead
Monongahela Incline
Level of Difficulty
Easy to Moderate
Dog-Friendly?
Yes
Kid-Friendly?
Yes
Mileage
2 miles
Don’t miss
Chatham Village. Built in 1932,
this 46-acre National Historic Landmark near Bigham Street, a couple of blocks from Grandview Avenue, brings the allure of an English countryside to an city setting. The Georgian-style residences are flanked by interior courtyards, a village green and 26 acres of pure woodland.
Learn more:visitpittsburgh.com/about-pittsburgh/neighborhoods/mt-washington
Kate Benz has been knowledgeable writer for 15 years, with bylines showing in Pittsburgh Magazine, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and different publications. She also is the writer of an Images of America e-book about Cranberry Township.