Pittsburgh
Two weeks of exploring
After leaving DC, we headed to the Pittsburgh area to see our oldest daughter for two weeks. Things were a little bit slower for her at work this time, and we were able to explore quite a bit of the city with her.
We stayed at Mountain Top Campground near Tarentum again. They are in the process of making some updates and improvements to the campground. While it’s not the best road to get into the campground, it’s usually so peaceful here and the views are pretty good too.
One of the first things we visited was Bicycle Heaven. It’s a nonprofit museum dedicated mostly to bikes. There are a few other things of interest here too, such as some Steelers memorabilia, but it’s mostly just bicycles and all of the spare parts you can imagine for them. When we first walked in the door, it looked like it was a small shop with a small selection of 70s style bicycles. However, at the back of the store is a staircase that takes you upstairs to a large showcase of bikes - some are historical, some are rare, and some have performed historical feats - but most are a large assortment of bikes from the 70s to now. We really enjoyed our visit here!
I visited The Frick Pittsburgh one rainy morning. This is the Pittsburgh estate of Henry Clay Frick and family. Henry Frick was well known for his business interests in coal, steel, and the railroad and was a millionaire by the time he was 30. While the Frick family has a well known art museum in New York City, their art collection in Pittsburgh is also quite extensive and can be seen through out the house and museum on the grounds. While the house tour isn’t free, the grounds, art museum, and greenhouse are all free to explore. The house tour was one of the best guided tours I’ve ever taken. The docent was very knowledgable about the Frick family, their history in Pittsburgh, and the history of the house. Because the house has stayed within the family all of these years, much of the interior is original. No photos are allowed of the inside of the house, but everything else on the grounds allows photos. The outside of the house was undergoing renovations when I was here.
The day we did the Duquesne Incline was a beautiful day after all of the rainy ones! The views of the city from the top were amazing, as were the views from the path along the river.
Grace and I met a few times while we were here. We visited the Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens and quickly realized that two hours was not enough time to just leisurely walk around, take photos, and still see everything. We weren’t able to see the outside gardens, but I think we saw almost everything inside. The gardens were getting ready for a botanical fashion show when we visited.
As we walked around the area outside of the conservatory, we could see a neighborhood that looks like so many around Pittsburgh. From the front you would think the house was a one and a half or two story home, but from the back you can tell its several stories tall. The Pittsburgh area has so many bridges and most of them are so much more than just a flat, boring bridge. I wish I could have taken more photos of the bridges we saw! The Cathedral of Learning is a 42 story building that is part of the University of Pittsburgh’s campus and can be seen just about anywhere within this area. Off in the distance we could see a beautiful church, so before we left the area, I convinced Grace to drive by St. Paul Cathedral.
Grace and I went out another evening and took photos from Washington’s Landing and the North Shore areas. I love that Pittsburgh has kept some of its history and repurposed some of the Heinz factory buildings into loft spaces. The Mr. Roger’s statue was closed, but we were able to still see a glimpse of him from the walkway. Near Mr. Rogers is a small memorial park to Pittsburgh area police officers. The dinosaur was a fun little find at the end of the street in one of the neighborhoods that we were walking though.
We also got together at different times for coffee, shopping, and/or just a meal. Burgatory had the best milkshakes (and their hamburgers and chicken sandwiches were pretty good too!). Adda Coffee, Harvest Moon Coffee & Chocolates, Yinz Coffee, and Churn Ice Cream & Coffee all had great coffee, pastries, ice cream and/or chocolates. With all of those great options, it’s probably a good thing I don’t live in Pittsburgh!