BIKEPGH MESSAGE BOARD ARCHIVE

The google maps takes you Westhall-Eckert-California-Lincoln. Would that work for you?

Yes. Many of us do it regularly. The key is to find the Eckhert Street "tunnel" from the trail. Ride the trail, and turn right on either Doerr or Westhall. Ride to Beaver Street (about two blocks). From Doerr, look left, from Westhall, look right. You'll see a big arch in the roadway that seems to be blocking your continuation "inland." That's Eckhert Street. Head there. Shortly after passing under that arch, turn left onto what I think is called Woods Run at that point. The road will start to climb ever so slightly. A long block further on, take another left, this time onto McClure. You will be on a very doable, but somewhat challenging climb for about 4 blocks. At the top, I prefer to turn left on Benton, and then turn right onto Lincoln at the stoplight. This will put you pretty much at the Pittsburgh/Bellevue line, near Millers Seafood Restaurant. Continue straight on Lincoln into the Bellevue business district. Edited to add: It is a very safe, low traffic, low speed route. Other than the climb up McClure, it's a great ride

+1 to what Sarah said. https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=203486699788212250094.0004dfe7bff6c371d2715&msa=0&ll=40.485784,-80.045378&spn=0.012795,0.026715

If you prefer hills to traffic, get to McClure, as described, then left on Antrim and right onto Fleming. Antrim is steep, but brief, then Fleming is a nice, quiet street that got a complete repaving in 2011 for about half its length. It ends at Termon. Left at Termon, right at the five-point corner of California and Termon, then left at Calif/Benton, same corner near Miller's as described above. One benefit to going this way (and not out of the way for the other) is to duck down Marmaduke Street just before the Calif/Benton corner, where there's a small park with a water fountain. It's right behind Miller's. The way to NOT go is Brighton. It's busy, it's hilly, it's narrow and twisty.

Why does it end at the old prison ? that stinks. I was told the big water co that our taxes pay for will not let the trail go through the big gate.The trail could go all the way down the river passed Bellevue for 600 miles or more, everyone could ride a bike to work right along the old r.r. tracks its flat would be a easy safe ride

At last week's meeting in Stowe Twp about running the trail along the other side of the river, someone asked me to look at this, so I did, using the very detailed aerial photographs on large easels. There are two really big reasons: On one side of ALCOSAN, one of its ponds goes smack up against the river. On the other side, there's no way to get over several very active rail lines. I do not see how you can even get between the tracks and the road, from Eckert Street. If you can see something I don't see in a recent aerial photograph, feel free to suggest it.

Actually, there is yet another reason. (That isn't to say that the fact here is no space at the Alcosan facility, and the railroad it NOT interested in sharing what LOOKS like a wide stretch but is actually one of the busiest rail lines in western PA aren't discouraging enough.....) As a result of terrorism attacks, key infrastructure elements, including water and waste water treatment facilities, are deemed national security priorities. Does anyone remember the big discussion about having to put a cap on the reservoirs at Highland Park? Same concern. Don't want anyone throwing poison in it or anything. With the ALCOSAN location, it just made it a LOT harder and a LOT more expensive to put public access through the property. So, with an impediment like that, and a railroad track that accommodates mile long, double stack trains at relatively high speeds on property and tracks that the railroad OWN, I think the odd of ever seeing a trail on this stretch are pretty limited.

Good info but to bad as the land is flat for miles and with the hill on the side no way to cut through I guess. but anything can be done,im going to look into this.

Here's where your trail access would have to be. Right through this cliff. On the right is PA65. On the left, barely visible, is the railroad. And rotsa ruck getting any railroad to allow creation of a bike path alongside an existing track, which more likely than not, is wholly owned by them. Think Sandcastle. And trying to get from Millvale to Sharpsburg.

Thanks for the replies, all. I think I will try it this week!

I biked Eckert-McClure-Antrim-Fleming last night. Antrim is only 100 yards. It's not a horrible hill, but you won't do it sitting down. Fleming starts off like Antrim but levels out the farther up you go. McClure is one long continuous climb, and puts you a few dozen feet higher than the Fleming-Termon corner.

Are these hills anything like Greenfield Ave in town?

Strava says McClure is .6 miles at an average grade of 6.1%. That's from the stop sign to the top of the hill (Swalfoort called this intersection Woods Run above. It's next to a bar called "Young Bros", I believe). There is another measurement (called a segment on Strava) that starts from Beaver measuring to Davis that says .9 mile at an average grade of 4.4%. I have ridden above many times. It's not a tough hill at all by Pittsburgh standards. I found a Strava segment labelled Greenfield Ave that says it is .6 miles and 5.7% average grade. So they sound comparable but I haven't ridden Greenfield (at least according to Strava) to say that they are.

If nothing else, McClure is far less trafficked than Greenfield.

Oh my! McClure and Greenfield are worlds apart in terms of cycling experience. I would equate McClure with the intensity level needed to climb Penn Avenue from Butler to 40th. Minus the traffic and the on street parking. Greenfield "feels" more like the Main Street climb from Butler to Penn, to me. That is totally unscientific, of course, and represents my personal impression. And, for what it is worth, I am a middle aged, overweight, slow cyclist riding a steel framed bike. There was a time when McClure represented a challenge for me, and there has been a time or two when I have walked a portion of it, but these days, it's just another road on the way home from work.

Swalfoort wrote:That is totally unscientific, of course, and represents my personal impression.

I second it! :) Your comparison is very true.

I've never tried McClure or Antrim. When I've needed to get from the Penitentiary up to California St (usually on my way across the McKees Rocks Bridge), I take Eckert to Woods Run Ave, then first left (up a one way street the wrong way) on Richardson Ave. Almost no traffic, and a gradual climb.

Hi, I am new to the group and came across this discussion while searching "North Shore -Bellevue connection". I usually go Mcclure - Antrim - Fleming - Davis - California - Lincoln. If I feel adventurous I take Antrim all the way up to California although the second block by the church is a killer. Will definitely check out Marmaduke St - seems like a nice shortcut and I had no idea there was a park there. On a related topic of connecting from Bellevue to the trail... I once chatted to a fellow rider riding towards downtown. While riding up in Bellevue, he turned off Lincoln and took a left somewhere on Brighton (or maybe a block or two before) going down to Jack's Run. I never went that way but I looked it up. Is it possible, once at the bottom of Brighton, to take Farragut all the way to the railroad, then cross it on foot, and bike alongside the railtracks for half a mile or so before hitting New Beaver Ave? Google aerial view shows what looks like an opening in the shrubbery at the end of Farragut but I don't know if there is a fence of some sort. is there enough room to bike alongside the tracks? I definitely want to go explore this route one day and will post an update here but feel free to share your experiences. Also, it there any way to get from Bellevue down to Jack's Run other than Brighton (narrow and way too much traffic) or Balsam (way too steep)? Finally, I guess one (rather expensive) way to connect Bellevue to the trail would be a bike ramp from Bellevue Bridge down to Farragut, then a dedicated bridge over the rail tracks, and a trail extension to New Beaver. Maybe one day we will see it done. I do believe Bellevue could be what Washington Landing is on the East for North Shore Trail users.