I’m on a roll. And now…Frick Park

Since I’ve covered the Frick house and the Frick Art Gallery, I might as well complete the trifecta and review my favorite park – Frick Park! Sadly, I never really appreciated the beauty of Frick Park until I moved to Squirrel Hill and can now visit it nearly every day. If you have only ever driven past and never entered the park (as I did countless times) give yourself a little present and take some time to explore it during these last days of fall. I’ve included some photos here to give you a sense of the park.

Frick is the largest of the Pittsburgh parks at 561 acres (!) and the most natural-feeling, in my opinion. While I enjoy the other city parks, Frick is absolutely my favorite for its variety and sense of wilderness in the city. Unlike the other city parks, Frick Park was not as obviously “created” or landscaped by the Victorian sensibility of the early 1900s, and so you retain the slopes and valleys and woodland feeling. I’ll try to cover the park in sections since there is so much to see.

Upper Park (Beechwood and Nicholson/English Lane, Squirrel Hill)
At one time there was a golf course in the park and you can see evidence of this in the grassy plateau mounds in the upper part of Frick. This section of the park is kept more like a large lawn and offers a great view of the Monongahela River valley. There is also the Blue Slide Playground, a baseball diamond, and in the winter some really great sledding riding here! If you're up for it, you can also take advantage of the exercise stops around the path here (or just practice your parcour moves).

Dog lovers take note – there is an off-leash dog area in the park which is most easily found by parking along Beechwood and entering here. Simply take the paved path back through the lawn area and keep walking until you see the sign for the OLEA (Off-Leash Exercise Area). Or, more simply, just follow all the other dogs and you’ll find it.

This is also a good entrance to the mountain biking singletrack which runs throughout the park. Just enter along the pathway and angle up above the baseball diamond, there’s a dirt path up the embankment that leads into the singletrack. Other paths run off the wider multi-purpose trails, just keep a look out on the sides. Here is a link to a nice map of the singletrack trais. Please remember that these trails are multi-use and consider joggers/kids/dogs.

Frick Environmental Center entrance (Beechwood just off Forbes Ave., Squirrel Hill)
This is a great entrance for hikers and joggers. Once you enter the park here, you are right on the wooded jogging paths and have a variety of options. Check out the wooden deck “overlook”, it’s a relaxing spot to hang out. If you don’t want to hike very far, there is a short loop around the deck that is perfect for young kids. Also take a stroll up past the summer camp area into the path through the brush. This used to be kept mowed, but is now allowed to grow as a natural meadow. The FEC still holds classes and a summer camp for kids, although the main building was burned out decades ago and has never been refurbished. There is a parking lot at this entrance.

Lower Parking lot – Commercial St (Squirrel Hill/Swisshelm Park)
There are three gravel parking areas just off Commercial St, at the bottom of the valley, which lead to the lower Frick trails. These parking areas are a great starting point for mountain bikers and those who want to hike both sides of Nine Mile Run. Nine Mile Run is in the process of being restored by the great work of the Nine Mile Run Watershed Association and deserves a look. Where it passes through the main part of Frick Park, the run is now kept cleared and protected (where necessary) to encourage the return of more native species. Please note that the water in the creek, however, is still not suitable for drinking or play and does contain runoff matter.

Cross the street from the main park, and you can hike/bike a relatively new portion of Frick Park. This trail runs along the valley at the bottom of the Summerset residential plan, which was built on a slag dump. This trail gives you a sense of the earlier character of the area before restoration and leads ultimately to the Monongahela River at Duck Hollow.

Tennis Courts and Lower Parking (Lot off W. Hutchinson, Regent Square)
For those entering Frick Park from the Regent Square side, both parking lots offer direct access to the lower portion of Frick Park, Nine Mile Run, and the hiking/jogging paths. You do start at the bottom of the valley on this side, so at least you get a downhill going back to your car. There are playing fields next to the lower parking lot and what used to be the rugby pitch. There is also a small picnic shelter.

There are several other entrances to the park, some with parking and some without. A full map of the park and entrances can be found here or on the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy website.