Submitted by jbartyy04 t3_z3jju8 in pittsburgh
New to Pittsburgh living in the squirrel hill area and I am looking for some places to go hiking. I would like the drive to be within 30-45 minutes. I would be willing to drive a hour if you think it would be really worth it.
Thank you in advance & Happy Turkey Day!
Love me a covered bridge
Get to the Laurels. Laurel Highlands Hiking Trail, Wolf Rocks Trail, the old growth hemlocks at Laurel Hill. A little more than an hour but spectacular mountains.
Can't recommend this enough. All of Forbes state forest is incredibly beautiful.
For some reason I feel like we don't appreciate the mountains we have enough. Some of the closer state parks are nice and all, but it's worth the drive to the ridges.
The ridges are some of the only places in PA where you can walk for 4 hours and not see another human. The ANF is cool too, but nothing beats the view of the laurels at sunrise/sunset. I can't recommend backcountry camping up there enough, its seriously a life changing experience.
Where exactly are the ridges? Interested in exploring the mountains but don’t know where to start.
If you look at google maps, there are two main ones running north-south about 50 miles east of Pittsburgh. Chestnut and Laurel ridge. Ligoneir is a good starting point. Check out Linn Run, Laurel Hill, and Ohiopyle State Parks!
Awesome, thanks looking forward to checking these out
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Are we assuming OP is aware of Schenley and Frick parks?
That’s my suggestion
Panther Hollow Run from Squirrel Hill heading to Panther Hollow Lake. A+++.
Is that the one that begins at the bottom of Bartlett & Serpentine?
Moraine and McConnells Mill have great trails. North Country Trail from the Ohio state line to Darlington (check out Indian Rock). Frick Park, Settler's Cabin (gets really muddy) and Harrison Hills Park are also good. Rachel Carson trail has very challenging terrain. Raccoon Creek and Brady's Run are also pretty nice and have opportunities to get elevation gain.
North Park, Raccoon Creek
AllTrials app has this info.
Check out the app All Trails. It gives you ratings, maps, photos, etc. I’ve found trails I’d never heard of.
Great to use while traveling.
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Settler's Cabin has a delightful little waterfall and it's usually not very busy.
Great flora there too. The moss, plant, and fungi varieties make you feel like you’re in the Laurel highlands (which of course are amazing but this is closer)
North Country Trail is great.
Harrison Hills Park in Natrona has some nice trails.
Hartwood Acres and North Park in north hills area are pretty nice as well
There are 9 county parks that each have their charms. There is a great app with all the trails - Allegheny County Parks Trails - https://apps.apple.com/us/app/allegheny-county-parks-trails/id1092687884
Other cool hikes:
Montour Woods is a little hidden gem. And even though I don’t really want intrusions from the outside world when hiking, it is pretty neat watching planes flying low overhead for landing at PIT.
Harrison Hills Park has a couple of really good loops above the Allegheny river. Also
Dead Man's Hollow in Mckeesport is underappreciated imo
Brady’s Run Park has some nice trails. I take my dogs there often
-raccoon creek has good hiking and a lake u can rent kayaks for
-settlers cabin is secluded and beautiful
-there’s a complex of state parks in the Laurel highlands (Kooser, Laurel ridge, linn run etc) that from my home in the eastern suburbs are about 45-50 mins to get to. Really lovely area.
Settlers Cabin is a hidden gem. It’s smaller and the trails aren’t the most challenging, but it is peaceful and not usually crowded. Raccoon Park is very nice but always feel like I see too many people.
Falls run off of route 8 is a really nice small hike
Nine mile run is pretty great if you "just need a hike right now".
The rail trail heading east from the waterfront is a nice flat well maintained path
Ohiopyle, Raccoon creek state park
If you're up for a TREK, drive out to Seneca Rocks
Fall Run off of Route 8 in shaler is not a very long or intense hike, but there’s a cool waterfall Galway up. Kids play and slide in it in the summer.
Todd nature reserve
Panther hollow is pretty solid in Oakland
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North park, Harrison Hills park, Avonworth Community park, Bellevue Memorial park, and Riverview park. Some of these trails are less traveled but good hills and pretty quiet.
I have many, but I will also not tell you about them because I like my nice secluded spots. I recommend visiting the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania, it’s very friendly and has beautiful trails and plants.
MrPinkThompson t1_ixlznk3 wrote
McConnell’s Mill is my personal favorite in the area