BIKEPGH MESSAGE BOARD ARCHIVE

Ride to Turtle Creek via Penn Ave and rte 130 from Blackridge.

Take 130 all the way to harrison city and then rte 993 out past Bushy Run Battlefield.

At that point, your on your own and unfortunately you are cutting across a relatively glacially heaved part of the world...lots of ups and downs.

that being said, I 130 is relatively flat and (to my recollection) 993 runs the valley until you get to about rte 66.

another option is frankstown road to rte 286 to (south) on rte 981 (pretty hilly, but not a super high traffic route).

hmmm.. I'd totally take the northern route - 380 -> 286 -> 981. 380 I know is decently slow to 286. 286 at that point is decently slow/has shoulders (slow as in volume, people are doing ~45). After that, I have less day-to-day experience on those roads, but there's nothing there (in fact, dip back west off of 981 and you may be able to bike south through Loyalhanna Lake park, which is gorgeous). Out there, if it's not a split lane highway, like 66 or 22, you should be fine (big shoulders and low volume traffic, though speeds will be around 50mph avg, it's just the way they drive out there).

that is a HAUL - are they giving away free beer, or are you just hardcore joyriding?

haha, I am going out to swim a couple of miles in the lake and then riding back. Technically it's only 30-ish miles.

Google Bike tells me to take Old William Penn. But that road has no shoulders and quite a bit of traffic moving fast.

Thanks for the suggestions!

A google search gives me this http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Pittsburgh-to-Greensburg-Low-Traffic-Route which puts you in the general area...

Old Wm Penn is really fine - while it lasts. Unfortunately it will dump you with some pretty lousy options (or roads I dont know).

30 miles... one way. You are hardcore. Let me know which way you pick, I've got a bunch of destinations out that direction and am interested in your route thoughts.

@sarah_q is afraid of nothing, now that she's rocking the 11-36...

You might want to check Oscar Swan's book.

http://www.amazon.com/Bike-Rides-Pittsburgh-Oscar-Swan/dp/0893579904

wow, that looks like a good ride to Greensburg.

I have Oscar's book -- I'll look at it again.

And Dan, yeah, 11-36 is the honeybadger of cogsets.

11-36?

Me likes!

Yay low gears!

Curious as to the the second largest gear. Last time I got a cog the choices were

11 _ _ _ _ 26 30

11 _ _ _ _ 26 32

11 _ _ _ _ 26 34

That leap from 34 to 26 is a killer - almost all hills leave you with too high and too low.

I went with the 11-20 and got myself a smaller small chainring.

Mick you should consider looking at mountain bike cassettes. Much closer spacing in the big gears.

yeah mine is a mountain cassette. I haven't count all the teeth. I just know it can go really fast or really slow.

I rode to Churchill from Irwin by taking brown ave, to the tri-boro to 993 through Trafford to Irwin. From there stay on 993 (Broadway) until you get to Manor and ride towards Jeannette on Penn Manor Road to 130. Take 130 to Greensburg. Make a left on 119 in Greensburg and ride to Crabtree. This will get you from Crabtree to Keystone Lake. http://g.co/maps/2kr9z I've ridden most of this route in pieces except for the crabtree to Keystone. Most of the route is rolling. Tri-boro can be a PITA, 130 from Jeanette to Seton Hill has wide burms. Good Luck!

oooh nice! thanks!

Hey, you've been in that Allegheny river. Just out of curiosity, any idea about how deep the water is right near the landing by PNC Park?

Just wondering.

I can't see the bottom and I do not try to touch it, ever. gross. So I can't help you @edmonds59. But I can't touch once I am a few meters from the shore.

The bottom tends to have various pieces of debris (old cars, sunken botas, skeletal gangsters in concrete shoes. Whatever), so that the depth one place might be different from that a few feet away.

Before they made the little amphitheater near the Science Center, when they did the New Years's day Polar Bear Plunge there, it was maybe 4 feet deep right off the dock. I have seen plants coming up off the bottom near the PNC fountain in the past few years, so it looked like it was under 5 feet in some spots.

I would not consider going in anywhere near town without something on my feet unless I was really avoiding the bottom.