Three Pittsburgh-born sisters armed with a cargo bike take to the Three Rivers Heritage Trail for a spectacular day of local fun and a delicious picnic.
Throwing a Bike Picnic on Pittsburgh’s Three Rivers Heritage Trail
Pittsburgh’s spring ushers in blue skies and sunshine and with it, an impulse to stretch legs, breathe in fresh air, and celebrate liberation from winter’s walls and ceilings. For sisters — and Pittsburgh natives — Jen, Niki and Stephanie, a coinciding birthday and reunion home calls for quality time honoring both the new season and its urges as well as another lap around the sun. So, with the outdoors in mind and a private space for inside jokes and letting loose at the forefront, they plot a course on local bike trails to accommodate charcuterie shopping en route to a dreamy picnic and makeshift table with a view. Some spontaneity required — they’ll know it when they see it!
Armed with a cargo bike built for hauling (we love the Madsen bucket bike and its sky-blue hue) and some sweet accessories like the Nantucket Cisco Pannier and the PieBox Wooden Pie Carrier, there is more than enough room for a picnic blanket and empty cutting board and for picnic supplies and a flower bouquet collected along the way. The Three Rivers Heritage Trail is a 33-mile pedal and foot path with segments on the banks of the Allegheny, Monongahela, and Ohio Rivers and access to Pittsburgh’s neighborhoods, business districts, and local attractions. Connecting residences to popular shopping districts as well as to green space, the trail is a perfect opportunity for start to finish plan-prep-participate ride and dine fun.
The Start of a Three-Sisters Journey on the Three Rivers
Beginning in Manchester, the happy trio rides along the winding Ohio River to the Allegheny and on to the 16th Street Bridge where an easy detour cross-water lands you in the Strip District. A long-time center for regional produce and specialty food products, the Strip is a local’s go-to for ethnic groceries, produce stands, meat and fish markets, and sidewalk vendors.
If Pittsburgh’s Strip symbolizes a reign on consumer foodstuffs, the legendary Pennsylvania Macaroni Company is king. Here, our riders enter the family-curated Italian grocery and deli just before closing, 4 pm on Saturday. Patrons often rely on behind-counter-suggestions and today recommend a round of La Bonde Goat Cheese and a Penn Mac Salami Rolled in Black Pepper. They add these to the jar of pesto and box of hardy crackers already in the basket.
Walking the bucket bike along Penn Avenue, Jen collects colorful produce from vendors — rainbow carrots, garden peas, purple and white cauliflower, crisp cucumber as well as peaches, apricots, strawberries, red and green grapes and black berries. Then, like kids in a candy store, noses barely pressed against the glass, the girls search Colangelo’s baked goods for a picnic finale — something sweet. Sfogliatelle, flakey layer Italian pastries with a custard filling, fit the bill and find their place gently in the wooden carrying box bungeed to the bike’s front rack. For Strip veterans, an unassuming bouquet from the flower vendor just outside Penn Mac will mix well with foraged daisies and Queen Anne’s lace. Plus, bottle of rosé from Pennsylvania Libations just around the corner, where only Pennsylvania made sips are carried, completes the mission.
Finding the Perfect Pittsburgh Picnic Spot
A little heavier, but back on two wheels, the sisters recross the Allegheny and the three bikes take the trail north — just briefly — before winding up the ramp to an old railway bridge turned bike and foot path connecting mainland and trail to Washington’s Landing.
The small Allegheny River island boasts a marina, restaurant, and the Three Rivers Rowing Association boathouse, as well as both residential and commercial properties, but still maintains an impressive sweeping green space, trees and wildlife, and pickleball and tennis courts to boot. The bike and pedestrian trail traces the perimeter of the island and just before the farthest tip, partially hidden by spring’s eager greenery, a spot overlooking the water calls to the riders.
A blanket sets the stage and on top of the wood board pulled from the blue bucket, the sisters layer the simple Strip-sourced charcuterie in a rainbow of colors and textures. Brown paper-covered short glasses are gently unwrapped and topped with rosé. The conversation and calorie replenishment swells. The sun sets, candles are lit, daisies are lazily pulled from a tousled bike bouquet and woven into a birthday chain. When a full moon begins to show over the water, the Pittsburgh island guests settle in to watch — their day’s adventure proving easily that it is BOTH the destination AND the ride there that makes for sweet times and indelible memories.
Story by Leah Hohman Esser
Production by Meg Van Dyke
Photography by Katie Long
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