Valhalla

I've been thinking a lot about the parallels of my step climbing obsession and the pilgrimages of world religions to shrines and holy sites around the world. It's a human need I believe to suffer for one's beliefs. To test the will, the heart, and faith by subjecting one's self to a challenge. It has certainly made me stronger not only physically but mentally and spiritually as well. I have grown a great deal of reverence for Pittsburgh's steps. After all, the whole reason they exist was to transport factory workers to and from work. The poorest of Pittsburgh would work 12 hour shifts then hike a sheer 400 foot cliff through thick smoke to get home, to see the end result of his suffering in the clear air above the factory shrouded in its own filth. To see his family safe and taken care of. There is no Valhalla like home.

I'm getting a bit lazy.

The other day I hiked from Polish Hill, over the Hill district, into Terrace Village, then into Oakland. I took a small break then hiked all the way back to The Southside. It was a long haul but the weather was perfect and I am on a deadline to get 20,000 steps done by the end of the week. I am 300 steps away....oh wait, I missed my deadline. Guess what? I don't care. I have mentioned before, at this juncture in the journey, it's become increasingly difficult to log steps as they are so spread out. For example: the neighborhood of Oakwood allegedly has 3 sets of steps amounting to 57 (allegedly due to the fact that I am using Bob Regan's inaccurate calculations) In the grand scheme of things, me going to Oakwood would be like picking up pennies on the street trying to make a dollar. Oakwood isn't close either! It will take me a whole day just to get out there, find the spread out sets of steps, and get home. At least there are other neighborhoods near by with steps too. I also have to hit Lincoln Place which is by far the most pointless of all Pittsburgh neighborhoods.
View My hike in a larger map In other news; the controversial North Shore Connector is opening today and as soon as I get off of work I am hopping on the trolley which stops right in front of Brew on Broadway and I am riding all the way to the Steeler's Stadium. Oh! The convenience.

Productive

In the last two days I made it my goal to get to 20,000. Right now I am at 18,818. That's pretty close. Problem is, at this point I've covered all the areas with large concentration. What's left is a set here and a set there. LOTS of walking with no step climbing makes Ben a dull boy. Yesterday I hit Stanton Heights and Morningside.

Each time I think I've found my new favorite view of the city, I have to think again. The view from the top of Mcandless street is breathtaking. It broadly shows the city but subtly. Centered with a view of Children's Hospital Oakland rises to the left above the height of the downtown skyline to the right. The sun was setting and the hazy spring day with the pastels of magnolia trees and crab apples made it look like a Degas painting. God it was gorgeous. Morningside reminds me of Brookline; The homes look similar and the street grid echoes Brookline's as well. There are some older homes, though, that look a bit more stately. Stanton Heights kind of annoyed me. It's really two different neighborhoods rolled into one. there's the side closest to Lawrenceville with turn of the century homes, brick streets on a grid, and some really stellar views. It connects directly to L-ville via city steps, some of the city's biggest sets in fact. But then there is the new Stanton Heights all cul du sacs and switchbacks and senseless cookie cutter homes that confused me endlessly. It's just my cup of tea is all. No offense.

Halfway

I have officially hikes 18,000 different steps in Pittsburgh now. That's nearly half-way. This spring and summer I hope to finish the whole 30,000 feet. When I am done with this, I will know the city like the back of my hand. It's empowering to be able to give directions and especially for a guy without a car that relies on public transit to know the many shortcuts to bus routes and the T. This city has really opened up to me. The steps are great but contrary to the popular saying, in this journey, the destinations are always way more fulfilling that the journey itself. Steps take you places.

city steps, races, art, music, booze?

There are a lot of things that I do to cope with my sometimes insurmountable anxiety.  When the weather in nice in the fair city of Pittsburgh I prefer exercise. Specifically running the many sets of city steps. Being the ADD suffering obsessive compulsive guy that I am, I can't just run steps like a normal person. I have turned it into this huge, detailed, research project. For those of you whom have been following this blog since last summer you know the Pittsburgh City Steps project I have been working on. For those of you unfamiliar with my new addiction, I shall recap. Pittsburgh has over 700 sets of city steps with a combined elevation of about 30,000 feet. The network of steps is extensive and nuanced; some homes are only accessible by steps. Some sets of steps are so oddly placed it's like being lost in an Escher nightmare. Some steps rise or fall draped over hillsides and end up going nowhere or to where the grid of neighborhoods once reached. Rubble of past lives and hollowed out sandstone foundations, old piles of coal, rusty bits of washing machines and childrens' toys are all that remain. They are like secret passageways offering unseen perspectives into the city's past. There are the more well maintained runs as well; rising to insane heights, offering unparalleled expansive views of the valleys around the city. I aim to find the location of each set of steps, map it, count the steps, photograph them, and give a little info about them as to serve for an online guidebook. It's proven at times difficult; finding the steps can be a challenge. I attempt to cover one neighborhood at a time by first mapping the locations as best I can from old paper maps and Google Earth's imagery, then I travel to the area of study and the real work begins.