Nature

A Stroll Through the Thornburg Conservation Area

When I go out exploring in and around Pittsburgh, one of the things I like to do is look at the map and see what kind of public parks and spaces are near me. More often than not these turn out to be simple playgrounds or parklets that do not warrant an article, but every once in a while I discover something amazing that I never knew was there.

The Thornburg conservation area is one of those places, and after visiting this one I can safely say that I look forward to returning many times in the future.

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The Best Pick-Your-Own Fruit Farms in Pittsburgh

One of our favorite summer activities in the Pittsburgh area is to visit local farms and pick our own fruits.

We've visited almost every farm over the years, and learned a thing or two about the best places for picking each type of fruit- and we're here to share these tips with you!

As fruit harvests vary greatly from year to year and picking conditions vary from day to day, we highly recommend calling ahead before you go to double check the farm has what you're looking for. With that being said, if you have a particular fruit in mind, check out these great farms!

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Pittsburgh Weekend Guide – Outdoors Edition

In many cases, weekend guides in popular cities focus on the main attractions that you should see and do. We enjoy these (and even wrote about them all in our first time in Pittsburgh weekend guide), but more often than not they leave us wondering what else a city has to offer outside of the iconic spots.

For our weekend guide series, we wanted to look at Pittsburgh from different perspectives. To do this we put together what we think are awesome itineraries for those who are on a mission to dive deep into just one aspect of the city.

For our outdoors weekend in Pittsburgh guide, we wanted to share some of our favorite outdoor spots in and around the city, all while keeping some of the major highlights in mind that you'd expect to visit during a weekend to Pittsburgh.

Note: Unlike other guides in this series, we know that going outdoors for a long hike can be rather exhausting. As such, we've built more downtime into this guide so you can relax or explore nearby attractions and Pittsburgh neighborhoods on your own.

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A Brief Hike on the Trillium Trail in Fox Chapel

One of the things we absolutely love about Pittsburgh is that you can pick any direction you want to go, drive 10-15 minutes on a highway, and end up out in the middle of nature.

This lends itself to the incredible opportunity of finding hiking trails and nature preserves, well, just about anywhere.

During our exploration of Fox Chapel, we decided to make a small detour to the Trillium Trail that is featured in the book 60 Hikes in 60 Miles (Pittsburgh Edition). This small nature preserve may not seem like much on the surface, but is one of those unique features you expect to find in a nature-oriented city like this one.

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Exploring Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve in Fox Chapel

Beechwood Farms in Fox Chapel, with its 5 miles of trails and varied habitats, provides a good spot for a short walk or a leisurely picnic.

This nature reserve serves as the headquarters for the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania, and as such, there are also many events at this location ranging from naturalist-led hikes and birdwatching events to summer camps and educational opportunities for kids.

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Moraine State Park – A Perfect Day Trip

The 16,725-acre Moraine State Park is one of the largest parks in western Pennsylvania and is located approximately 40 miles north of downtown Pittsburgh.

With land and water activities aplenty, this park is one of the crown jewels in the region and should be on everyone's radar when looking for a great park to visit on a day trip!

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Settlers Cabin Park – An Easy Hike to a Mini Waterfall

With the recent growth in Settlers Ridge in Robinson Township, this would be the last place you'd expect to find a 1,600+ acre county park.  But go just a few hundred feet away from I-376 and you'll come to Settlers Cabin Park, one of the largest public parks west of the city.

Featuring several hiking trails, many recreational facilities, the Pittsburgh Botanic Gardens (ticket required), and even a mini waterfall, this park truly has something for everyone!

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Climbing the Steps of South Side Slopes for Pittsburgh Views

Pittsburgh's South Side Slopes is one if the city's most unique neighborhoods due to the fact that the vast majority of it is built on the side of a hill.  In true Pittsburgh fashion when a hill is involved things get weird, and this neighborhood is no different.

What makes South Side Slopes so unusual lies in its accessibility. As the hill is often quite steep, road access up and down is limited compared to other neighborhoods in the city. To account for this oddity, numerous staircases have been built over the years to allow residents to navigate the hillside and also reach neighboring South Side with ease (these staircases are a significant percentage of the 700+ that can be found in the city).

One of our favorite aspects of South Side Slopes is that many of these staircases offer impressive views of the city, and can be enjoyed during a one to two hour hike beginning and ending in South Side. As navigating South Side Slopes can be tricky at times, we wanted to share our most recent route for others who would like to get out, climb some stairs for some exercise, and take in several great city views!

Note: Since writing this post, the South Side Slopes Neighborhood Association has defined most of the route below as the “Church Route.”  For more information beyond our post, check out their write-up about the Church Route here. Our recommendations are slightly different, but the listed route will make for a good climb all the same!

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