BIKEPGH MESSAGE BOARD ARCHIVE

Hey, this is next to my house! I always take Shady to get home from that area. It seems to be the least hilly of the hills, and wide enough in most parts for people to pass safely.

Highland, left on Alder, right on Shady...

Shady to Forbes (right turn - now with sharrows... oh yea!)

Take Forbes to Wightman St (left turn - bike lane!)

Wightman to Beacon (right turn - another bike lane!)

It is all downhill from here.. Go down Beacon, turn right on Hobart/Panther Hollow (whatever it is called) when you get to the end. Make sure you get in the left lane.

Take a left onto Greenfield Rd at the stop light, then go all the way down the hill and across the Greenfield Bridge.

Take an immediate right after you get across the bridge, before the stop light. The street name is Alger. It turns into a one way after a block, but you can either get off and walk down to the school on the sidewalk (or ride really carefully?), or turn left then right and take Greenfield Ave a few blocks to the school (turn right at Lydia - there is a stop sign).

This is an easy and low-trafficy, if not most-direct, way to get there:

Beechwood Blvd [at curve go straight onto...]

Morrowfield

Murray

Lilac

Greenfield

Morrowfield is pretty steep going down to Murray, but it's only one block. If you don't want to do it on the way back, just continue along Murray to (say) Wilkins.

dwillen's route is nice and direct, though you may run into snarly rush-hour drivers once in the park (if you're lucky they'll be stuck and not moving).

shady is a pretty steep way up into squirrel hill, and you don't even have to climb the hill, really. consider going through cmu, left at phipps over the panther hollow bridge, then behind the playground and along the trail that takes you near the schenley oval. then down greenfield road, across the bridge, and jog over to greenfield.

you could also combine dwillen's and ahlir's routes and go up beechwood to wilkins to murray or negley or wightman, then work your way over to wightman and then to beacon.

or you could go up through the golf course, up to wightman, then to beacon. or down serpentine.

in short, there are plenty of ways to get to and over fifth from where you are, and a million fun, interesting, and safe ways to head once you are on the other side of fifth.

I would tend to agree with Ahlir's route myself! cuts out the hill on Shady too... I do sometimes take Woodland Rd. through Chatham's campus for a more scenic route.

As for the return route, I'd return on Shady, or if you want a longer route, you can go down Greenfield and loop back through Panther Hollow to avoid the really big hills.

I've never took Morrowfield to Murray. I'll have to try Ahlir's route someday. It seems like it might be a couple miles longer, but you skip the hill in Squirrel Hill. Might be worth it if you're hauling a lot of stuff.

Hah, I guess my idea of "big hill" doesn't match with everyone else. Come on, Shady to Forbes is just a little bump.

if you go through Chatham, I make a left onto 5th at the light at Maryland and then a right at Woodland Road. If you go through right when it changes green, you should get through in plenty of time before the traffic on 5th starts again.

"Greenfield and loop back through Panther Hollow"

I would usually do this. Through the Hollow and turn on Ellsworth, but if it is dark when you leave, and there is snow on the ground, Junction Hollow might not be greatest route.

I was going to just throw out the obligatory - "You can't get there from here," but since HV hit on my quandary when going to the oval for soccer, I'll pitch in. When the oval is your destination, you are absolutely right about going through CMU. But since that involves going up Overlook, it is just as easy (and faster) to take Beechwood to Wilkins, then right to Shady, turn left on Shady then follow dwillen's directions. Plus from Highland Park you can go from the ELB bike lane, through the park, and right onto the Beechwood "bike lane" and really feel like you are in a city that wants you to ride your bike. Enjoy!

Unless you've got new road brake levers, I don't recommend going down Morrowfield. There's not much run-out before the intersection at the bottom.

Which bothers you more, cobblestones, or left-hand turns from multi-lane arterials?

but if it is dark when you leave, and there is snow on the ground, Junction Hollow might not be greatest route.

good point dwillen! I'll probably be taking the 5th Ave sidewalk on the way back from South Side today...

"When the oval is your destination, you are absolutely right about going through CMU. But since that involves going up Overlook"

The wide, crushed limestone trail that HV suggested is almost completely flat, it avoids going up overlook by just going around it. It isn't paved though, and they don't seem to maintain it with much frequency. It would be super pretty in the snow though.

I commute on 25s and my single speed has 23s. It wouldn't be pretty for very long.

Thanks for the clarification. I had a feeling with the playground reference.

Here's my recommendation for you. nice and slow, and as few hills as possible Works with road bikes and skinny tires. No cobbles, I think. The only challenging left turn is Highland -> ELB. Should take you about 40 mins if you stop for all the lights.

http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/highland-to-greenfield

Three loud cheers for new bike lanes. Lyle, I have a new bike all together (got it in July), and my brakes are all together fantastic and effective--a spin in the right direction. Still contemplating the route I'll take. My stuff isn't too heavy, so I think I'll fair hills alright.

Thanks so much for the input, everyone!

awesome, thanks! I take that left onto ELB a lot, so I should be in good shape.

uh... a word of advice, if this is happening when schools get out (Allderdice got out at 2:30, but after school busses left at 3:30 and 4:30 too, IIRC) then watch for gaggles of teenagers walking around and down Morrowfield. They have a tendancy to push each other into traffic. You're golden by 4:30, or if it's too cold to be obnoxious.

The route I suggested is only TO greenfield. Coming back you need to do something different as Bartlett is one-way and there's that uphill on Wightman. I'd suggest Bartlett -> Murdoch (cobbles) -> Darlington -> Deniston -> Northumberland and then as before.

There are a couple of busy intersections that you have to cross but they're not left turns. But it will be dark ... Hm. I wonder which is worse, crossing Forbes at Murdoch or crossing Wightman at Darlington. Kind of a toss-up, but at least if you do the Murdoch->Aylesboro connection, that's the only tricky intersection.

Anybody know if there will be anything going on at the synagogues for Hanukah?

Here's my recommendation for you. nice and slow, and as few hills as possible Works with road bikes and skinny tires. No cobbles, I think. The only challenging left turn is Highland -> ELB. Should take you about 40 mins if you stop for all the lights.

http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/highland-to-greenfield

if you're heading along wightman, might as well go one block further and hit the bike lanes on beacon, no? it's flatter, at any rate.

Bartlett avoids having to make a difficult left from Hobart to Greenfield, and avoids having to deal with the bike lane disappearing and road narrowing at the end of Beacon. It's downhill from Wightman and then there's only a little grade up to the PHR intersection that's barely worth mentioning.

Plus there's usually less traffic on Bartlett, and you don't have to deal with getting right-hooked at the Wightman-Beacon intersection.

...a word of advice, if this is happening when schools get out...

Anybody know if there will be anything going on at the synagogues for Hanukah?

This is why I love this message board! You guys are thorough! Why am I not on here more? Oh yeah...that thing called work...

"difficult left from Hobart to Greenfield"

I love the look on the oncoming drivers face when I pull a "Pittsburgh left" right there.

You can go ahead and reference this post in the "in the saddle" thread.

Thanks for posting the map. I think I'll give Bartlett a shot for my morning commute. I usually do forbes>wightman>>poucusset>>greenfield, but that route is not for the faint of brake.

Re synagogues, there's one on Forbes @ Murdoch that often has a pretty busy loading zone in front for events. Lots of old folk & families w/strollers cross Forbes, presuming the rent-a-cops have their backs when it comes to traffic.

For the synagogs, the Yeshiva school at Wightman and Hobart sponsors a Hannukah mobile parade every night of the holiday, essentially stopping traffic, rolling minivans at pedestrian speeds with giant menorahs on top, blaring holiday music all through Squ'ill. at least they used to when I lived across the street a few years ago. Right at the end of rush hour.

I'd detour to be a part of that, personally. In fact, that would be awesome, set up a little LED menorah on top of the helmet, sing along to the tunes in hebrew/yiddish. That would be awesome.