Starting Point: Pittsburgh

By Eilene Lyon

This is the first in a series of posts about a long-awaited trip to ride bikes from Pittsburgh to Washington, D.C. along the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) rail trail, and the Cumberland & Ohio Canal (C&O) towpath trail. We spent the first full day of our trip in Pittsburgh, a city I had not visited since a childhood trip to watch a Pirates baseball game in Three Rivers Stadium.

Before we departed, I consulted blogger Brandib1977, who travels regularly to the city. I asked her to give me her top five cultural/historical sites to visit, and also asked her about the incline. (I inquired because I’d seen a model of one in a movie about Mr. Rogers.)

She informed me that Pittsburgh actually has two inclines, also known as funiculars. These are fixed-angle cog railways that take people and goods up and down a steep slope. Both of them go from riverside to the top of Mount Washington, about a half mile apart.

We could see one of the two inclines from our hotel’s rooftop lounge (The Joinery Hotel), but we did not ride either of them during our brief stay. Of the highlights Brandi suggested, we made it to four of the five, the last one being on our return trip when we had a morning free before going to the airport (The Heinz History Center).

We started our first day by taking a short stroll through the downtown neighborhood. Nearby is the gorgeous Allegheny County Courthouse. It’s different from most county courthouse buildings I’ve visited. However, it’s in the same Richardson Romanesque style as the Blackford County Courthouse in Hartford City, Indiana, where I did quite a bit of research in 2017.

It’s constructed around a central courtyard, and has a bridge reminiscent of Venice’s Bridge of Sighs (and it also leads to a jail, among other buildings). The interior has some murals depicting historic events (pre-Pittsburgh, mostly) and one representing Justice. They were painted in 1940 by Vincent Nesbert.

Bridge from the main courthouse building to adjunct buildings across the street.

Courtyard in the courthouse with early morning light reflecting from windows where I’m standing.

Courthouse corridor with arches.

Mural of “Justice” (whose head is obscured by the ornate chandelier).

We hailed an Uber to take us to Phipps Conservatory where we enjoyed the summer exhibit titled “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” and the various gardens, inside and out. After a bite to eat in the café and a stroll through the colorful gift shop, we headed to the nearby Carnegie Museums.

“Hookah-smoking caterpillar” here holds a garden hose.

The Cheshire Cat, with trademark grin.

Have a seat at the Mad Hatter’s tea party!

Another highlight were frequent sightings of Dale Chiluly glass art.

A fairy orchid.

A stunning orchid.

Located between the Carnegie-Mellon University and University of Pittsburgh campuses, there are two connected museums: art and natural history. We focused on the latter. After learning a good bit about Pennsylvania geology, we enjoyed examining the extensive gem and mineral collection. It was the finest we’d seen since our visit to the Montana Bureau of Mines Mineral Museum in Butte, probably even surpassing it.

That evening, we walked from the hotel, crossed the Smithfield Street Bridge over the Monongahela River, and dined at the Grand Concourse seafood restaurant. It is located on the ground floor of a historic railroad building (the upper floors are occupied by businesses and were closed). From our table, we had a fantastic view of the city skyline. Afterward we took a walk along the river trail.

The main dining room.

The main dining room.

The upper floors of the P&LERR building, partly obscured by reflections in the glass door.

A most unusual glass skyscraper.

The next morning, we went a few blocks to the bike rental shop to get outfitted and begin our cycling journey. The shop is conveniently located along the trail, though we backtracked about a half mile to reach our starting point (technically the trail’s end point at Mile 148.8). It’s located at the confluence of the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers, where they form the Ohio River.

We had three days of riding ahead to reach Cumberland, Maryland.

To be continued…

Feature image: Pittsburgh skyline. The Putterer remarked at all the acronyms. What do they mean?