does anyone have any suggestions for moderate, leisurely routes around the city? all of my favorite rides seem to be long or incredibly hilly, and while i like both of those things, it's just not something i want to do every day. i'd like some ideas for rides to fill out the rest of the week.
i live in shadyside, and most of my moderate rides start off going through highland park, up beechwood, or down neville. is there any good biking east of the city? i've never tried. added bonuses for cool things to see along the way, be they good views, disused evidence of pittsburgh's industrial heritage, or just calming wildlife.
i'm not afraid of traffic, but i'd rather avoid long narrow stretches with fast moving traffic and no shoulder (allegheny river blvd comes to mind). good roads would be an additional plus.
Around the city but in the city? Or out of the city?
You should look for Oscar's book. "bike rides out of Pittsburgh by oscar swan"... North East offers the best roads in the closest distance.
There are a million (literally) rides that cover 30 miles
nice hilly 30 mile ride east (get a map) east =
Lincoln ave out of lincoln lemmington.
Lincoln
L verona rd
through light
L rd st
R Poketa
through light
up hill crazy stopsign left at T then straight
through (only "down" there is)
now on yellow belt (hulton rd here)
Fork Left on Indiana
Fork Left on Hamil
CLIMB more up to the top, then climb more
Right on Hunter at the real top
Best descent in a 10 mile radius down to oakmont
right on main st, left at stop sign to get over
onto the safe st.... follow to the end and the
new light and turn left to cross the hulton bridge
left on freeport road and come home on freeport.
4th line should say 3rd st
Taken from a friend, pretty much right out of Oscar's book.
http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Elfinwild-to-Church-Lane
http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Hills-to-the-North
http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Webster-Drennon
The last of which includes part of Steevo's route.
thanks for the suggestions. i will definitely have a look at these, though i think your definitions of "moderate" might differ from mine.
i'm looking for rides anywhere. within the city, going out of the city, part in part out, whatever.
here is what i did today, and it was just right:
http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/little-pine-creek-then-some-hills
Sorry, I missed the qualifier about easy-ish.
How's this (actually the reverse of my routine trip *into* the city): Cross 40th St Br, get into Millvale, get on Babcock (past Hardee's and Rita's), ride to where Babcock and Three Degree meet. Babcock peels right; 3D goes left; in front of you is a car wash. There is, however, a third option.
Duck around the left side of the car wash, and head into the trees in the back. What you're on is the old Harmony Trolley line, gone since 1930ish. Not 200 feet in, you'll find a pond, replete with ducks, frogs and other wildlife. Sit and bask in the wonder of it all for a while. The path itself is actually pretty well maintained, lots of gravel in some of the muckier places.
A half mile later, a suburban street dead-ends from the left. Take it, and wiggle up to Perry Highway, and go left (south). When you get to Willi's Ski Shop, go past it and turn right on Graham. This avoids a nasty, narrow, uphill, heavily traveled piece of Perry. At the top, you're back on Perry, but it's relatively level and a lot calmer.
Continue into West View, turning right on Center. (*mild plug* Scholl's Bike Shop is on the diagonal left corner if you need anything.) Cross I-279, ignore the right just after the bridge, but turn right just after that. This takes you into Bellevue. Left at Classic Chevrolet, and you're on Calif Ave.
You can take Calif all the way into the North Side (I've raced the Route 500 bus from here into town, and won, twice), or duck down Antrim onto Woods Run and pick up the river trail, taking note to get off it before the casino and snake your way through the maze of streets to get back over to Allegeny Ave and Heinz Field. Also, swalfoort has a thread from back about a year ago about "Bellevue to Downtown" or some such, in which she describes how to use Shadeland to get across Woods Run and thus get into town. Let's just say that there are several decent ways to do it, all of them useful to know if you're up in this end of town.
From wherever you find yourself on the North Shore, find your way into, through and past Downtown. All told, it's about 30 miles.
Just did Steevo's route. Great ride. Some good climbs, great downhill on Hunter EXCEPT the downhill side was recently milled so it's pretty dangerous, not to mention uncomfortable. Freeport Rd was super fast on the way back due to a little tail wind.
One correction. L on Hamill should read R on Hamill off of Indiana.
Thanks for the route Steevo.
Hunter is also one of the best climbs within a ten mile radius of the city....
A few other favorites:
http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Middle-and-North
http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Roller-Coaster122793
You can also go out Middle Road and come back on Saxonburg. The cross road you take will determine the length.
Really short: cross on Klein.
Short: cross on Harts Run
Middling: cross on Cedar to Church Lane (a favorite)
Longer: take Middle Road Extension to Bairdford
brian: i've done all of those except klein. and don't forget berryhill for a shorter option (though that's the only way i prefer to go up saxonburg and come back along middle). i did a 40 miler last week where i went out middle to the red belt and took logan back to saxonburg: you have to love those country rollers. and that part on church where you go from bombing down a hill and around corners, hoping a deer doesn't jump out in front of you to a 20% hill out of nowhere. great stuff!
also, thanks for sending me your paths: i've used them already pretty extensively (middle/saxonburg is one of my favorite loops, and i stole the first half of the route i posted earlier from you).
yeah, the places above the allegheny are where i end up most often. i'm just wondering what(danny chew) NEW ROADs i could hit around the city. i don't have oscar's book (though i should, i know). and i plan on doing potato garden sometime this week. and also that steevo route. and also, a book doesn't get to tell me the nuanced stories, like which roads have been repaved in the last two years, or which right-of-ways have the best views of huge piles of twisted metal.
so thanks everyone for your input, and keep the ideas coming, if you get more. west and south are also pretty untraveled, if you know good ways to get there.
Delwar Road, none bigger.
This is a really ancient site, but the link still works:
http://www.cs.cmu.edu/afs/cs/user/spok/bike/#doortodoor
It gives turn by turn directions for rides of 20-30 miles heading in various directions. Most seem to start in the Oakland area.
@ Swalfoort - Love it...definition of ancient site: Straight HTML pages, no CSS. How things have changed.
well, i finally made it east. as a result of injuries, i was forced to put all real rides on hold, but i'm getting back into things, and did steevo's ride the other day, and it was enough to get me to make my own route east today. i followed nate's route toward monroeville, then went up through penn hills and came back along freeport road, and it was everything i had hoped for.
so yeah, turns out there are lots of awesome roads east of the city to bike on, and like i do north of the city now, i feel confident enough improvising. awesome.
thanks!
Go through Shadyside on streets parallel to 5th. Cut down through the Central Catholic Parking lot and head down toward Panther Hollow. It will turn into the Panther Hollow Trail, which will lead to the Jail Trail. Follow that downtown, cross the street and continue to the Smithfield St Bridge, Cross and turn left down into the parking lot and to the river. Catch the Southside Trail. Continue until it ends. Loop back to the Hot Metal Bridge and get back on the Jail Trail the opposite way. At Greenfield Ave, go up Greenfield until the Greenfield Bridge, cross the bridge and follow Swinburne. When it ends past the nursery turn right to the Blvd of the Allies. Cross the Schenley Park Bridge and then take the second right which will take you down to Phipps. From there you have several options to go through the park and return to Shadyside. This ride is fairly low traffic and limited (for Pittsburgh) climbs. Depending on what you do in the Park it will be @ 20-25 miles
I've posted several routes at:
http://www.mapmyride.com/community/groups/view_group_routes?g=258110234454
djrbikes,
I think you mean the Swineburne Bridge (which carries Frazier St). The Greenfield Bridge (also called Beechwood Blvd Bridge) is much further up the hill, and leads to Greenfield Road in Schenley Park, which would also be a nice ride.
exactly right. I agree with what you say but personally like the climb up past the nursery better than Greenfield Ave. It's windier and has a nice view into Panther Hollow. Crossing the Greenfield Bridge at the top and then going through the park is nice, but climbing Greenfield Ave in traffic isn't the best.
