Schenley Park Visitors Center

On our way to see the plants and butterflies at the Phipps Arboretum we came upon an interesting bridge in a park. Cool Europeanish love locks in Pitt brought back nice memories of our lovely tour of Europe but we didn’t know what the locks there were all about at that time :) Hope they keep it going. theres still plenty of space for more locks …

I ride through Schenley Park often on the Panther Hollow Trail on my bike to access the rail trails that run along the Mon. Additionally, I’ve been there many times for walks and on a couple occasions for picnics. Given that I live in N. Oakland, Schenley is the closest major park to me, and is my go-​to when I need to escape the urban jungle for a bit.
Last Fri., CM and I took a long walk along the ravine, which is my favorite trail in Schenley. I like this trail because it parallels a stream and isn’t near any of the roads, so it provides an opportunity to feel like you’re further out in the woods than you are. Schenley Park, unlike Frick Park, is more of a recreational park, with more open spaces and facilities for sports, so it doesn’t feel as wild. There’s an overlook that offers a great view of the skyscrapers downtown. I’ve been there to view Fourth of July fireworks before, and last Fri., CM and I took advantage of it to take in the sunset, and it was magical.
If I had to say what I’m not so much a fan of in Schenley Park, it would be the layout of the roads. While I get that it’s a park, I always get turned around when driving through, since they’re very twisty-​turny, which disorients me. I also find the layout of many of the paved paths similarly confusing. Oh, well.
Schenley is definitely one of the best three parks in PGH, and has a lot of square footage and amenities. However, it doesn’t have the rustic charm of Frick, nor the majesty of the fountain and the rivers at Point State Park. Thus, 4.5 stars it is.

I dont get why the «visitors Center» is for the reviews of the actual park.
Anyways I seriously ADORE Schenley Park. There are so many trails to choose from and they are unique. For instance, the one near the visitors center has a cute little stone bridge that you cross.
Panther Hollow Lake is so relaxing and peaceful. You would never guess you were in the middle of the city while spending time on the trails or at the lake.
I’m so thankful for this park! We are moving to the west side of the city in August, but Schenley will still be my go-​to park to escape and hit the trails!

Great little park in the midst of downtown Pittsburgh. A lot of different walking trails, food vendors and a nice place to just chill with friends. Our group met up here for a little tour through downtown Pittsburgh and it was a convenient initial meeting point to get us started.
There’s a great view of the Cathedral of PIttsburgh from the plaza and some great potential photo’s for us tourists. There’s also opportunity to play disc golf here and you’ll often see artists, University students, hipsters, families just hanging out in the park.
The only downside is the downtown parking, although there is plenty of pay parking surrounding the plaza at $ 2/​hour.

Ah, a nice late season afternoon! What better time to get out there and go for a nice hike? My cousin and I decided to meet up at Schenley Park and work off some of those holiday pounds. So we packed our sammitches, some apples, dried fruit, and filled our water bottles up and hit the trails. Schenley Park has an amazing trail system, though they’re not as extensive or as isolated as Frick Park’s trails are.
So we met up at Schenley Plaza, which is as good a place as any to begin a hike. We passed the Mary Schenley Fountain, then went down Schenley Drive past the Frick Fine Arts Building and crossing the rail line on Schenley Bridge. Working our way past the Phipps and the Schenley Park Café, we crossed Panther Hollow Bridge before setting down on the Upper Panther Hollow Trail. Panther Hollow Trail paralells Panther Hollow Road and skirts the edge of the woodlands. About halfway down the trail is a neat little footbridge across a dry creek. We worked our way down to the Bartlett Street Playground.
From there we crossed Panther Hollow Road and began working our way west and in a clockwise loop on the Bridle Trail, which skirts the southern edge of the park. At this point we were just south of the Schenley Overlook, which gives you a great view of the Pittsburgh Skyline. The Overlook is a part of The Meadow, home of the skating rink, disc golf course, and a playground. We turned north as the Bridle Trail headed back to the Visitor’s Center, passing Panther Hollow Lake again.
Here we decided to kick it in a notch. The trails at this point become more rigorous and go through some scenic wooded areas of the park. We picked up the Lower Panther Hollow Trail, which parallels the Hollow Run. We worked our way down again to the Bartlett Playground & Shelter where we took a late lunch break. We returned via the Steve Faloon Trail, returning back to the Visitor’s Center.
All in all we had a great afternoon of hiking and we managed to get in about 5 miles of hiking in without leaving the park’s boundaries.

This is a review for Schenley Park as a whole, rather than just the visitors center, but this seems to be where Unilocalers are Unilocaling the park anyway, so… when in Pittsburgh.
After a wonderful visit at the Phipps Conservatory, husband and I decided to extend our Schenley experience by heading up to Flagstaff Hill. We joined dozens upon dozens of other folks doing the same: couples on blankets playing Connect Four, sunbathing coeds, teams of Frisbee golfers making use of Schenley’s course, families picnicing at tables, children running around the playground, cyclists taking on the steep drive, even a cheery ice cream truck that brought people flocking. There was such a peaceful and communal feeling atop this hill, so husband and I found a bench to sun our legs, soak up the view of the city, and — my personal fave — people-​watch.
We stayed who-​knows-​how-​long, just enjoying this expansive, natural space. Pittsburghers are quite lucky to have such a big, beautiful park right in the heart of the city.

This is one of my most favorite places on earth.
I have come here on countless occasions in the mornings, between-​classes, 3am’s after finishing an assignment…
Its right beside CMU, yet it feels like most CMU people don’t know about it. which is awesome cos the place is very peaceful and serene most of the times.
I mostly walk around through the golf-​courses, but visit the trails inside panther hollow and the tiny visitor-​center occasionally.
Its pretty safe, no matter what time I am in there. a police-​car seems to be taking rounds every half an hour or so during the night.
Its not as big as urban parks in other cities, but its still got a lot of charm, a lot of secret trails and nooks to explore.

I do love this park, it is huge with a variety of places to explore. I’ve taken many a meandering walks along the wide paths that crawl up and around the hills. I like to start out on a path and just keep walking and connecting onto different paths until I come to a place in the park I’m familiar with again. Most places of the park are kept up nicely, except for some of the stairs and the pond. They have quite a few tennis courts (though I’ve never played) and some good flat running options (including a rubber ¼ mile track) where you can watch kids at soccer practice. Julie’s review of the Vintage Grand Prix is spot on, and I would also recommend it!
The visitors center is rustic looking with some great fruit slushies and includes a lot of background info about the park. Sometimes there will also be some live music in this area but I’m not sure when or why.
Taking a trip to flagstaff hill in the summer for movies in the park is a great free activity for when it isn’t raining in Pittsburgh (although parking does get tough around dusk). You can also check out the sled riding in the winter when the college kids risk life and limb with a cafeteria tray for a sled.
I hope I’m not spoiling a secret, but this park also harbors a good hill to watch the fireworks from.

Gorgeous park. Again, hard to believe it’s in the middle of a city. Rolling hills. Great, well-​marked trails. There’s beautifully maintained a track at the Oval Sportplex, and a 1k trail around that, which encircles tennis courts. This spot is great for running since it’s nearly the highest point in the park and gets great breezes.
Water fountains and bathrooms scattered throughout the park. Feel pretty safe (safer than Frick). Beautiful little lake (Panther Hill). Haven’t been to the pool or Phipps Conservatory yet.

Lovely Schenley Park, oh lovely Schenley Park… Things you are famous for!
Nice walking trails.
Frisbee golf!
Panther Hollow Lake…
Flashback! Where Kordell met… well I don’t know how many dudes.
And best of all, The Annual Vintage Grand Prix!!!
What a great event on a hot Summer day! We went for an hour and ended up spending the day! We watched the qualifying races which were great fun. All the race cars were so cute! And a lot of them ran really, really fast! We even got to hang out at the starting line. Also, we were very amazed by the car shows. There were Aston Martins, Austin-​Healeys, Bentley’s, Jaguars, Lotus’, Mini’s, MG’s, and Triumphs. There were Lamborghini’s and Maserati’s and Porsche’s and heck, cars that I had never seen before! Plus, there were a lot of muscle cars from the 60’s and 70’s. I was totally amazed! This awesome event only comes once a year, every July, so get ready for next year! Here’s the link:
Go. You’ll absolutely love it! I promise!!!

The park itself is just lovely. Pittsburgh’s city parks are great. Right in the middle of things and totally accessible.
Schenley is great for jogging on the wide, rolling paths that extend into the park from behind the visitors’ center. The steep stairs that drop down to the valley and the pond are maybe better for walking (and they really should fix the stairs that go up the other side). But in the spring there are duck babies.
If it isn’t joggers’ rush-​hour, the Schenley paths also are good for bicycle routes to and from Oakland (please hail when passing, Pittsburghers). I also like the pool in summer.
In winter, the tracks at the top of the hill (now, the new rubberized track) get a lot of sun and thaw quickly. Sometimes, in the evenings, the tennis court lights are on, which is cool. Plus, the wide open views up there, near the kids’ toys, are relaxing after your jog.
I’m not wild about the ice rink. Too many aggressive little kids.
And I’ve never actually been in the visitors’ center. But I do love that park.