2011 Potpourri

During the past year Cristin and I have visited some outstanding outdoor locations that never made it into a previous blog post so here is a round-up of some of them.



The Grand Marais harbor on Lake Superior.

Pittsburgh, PA

On the last weekend of October, Cristin and I visited her hometown of Pittsburgh.  We timed our trip so we could take in a Steeler's game.  Pittsburgh is at the Three Rivers confluence, where the Allegheny R. and Monongahela R. join to form the Ohio R.   The land area between the converging tributaries at the confluence is known as  the "Point" and was a strategic western location early in our nation's history and played a key role in the start of the French and Indian Wars; George Washington slept here :)  This area is now downtown Pittsburgh. 

We saw the Steelers play their nemesis the New England Patriots and Tom Brady at Heinz Field on a cool and pleasant Sunday late afternoon. The Steelers won 25-17 in an exciting, dramatic game. The victory resulted in the Steelers having the best record in the AFC.

Steeler's Girl #82

View from our seats at Heinz Field. Wow! 

Enjoying a post-victory dance-off at Redbeard's Bar and Grill in Mt. Washington.

The nightime view from Mt. Washington with Heinz Field still lit up after the game. 

A view of the Three Rivers confluence, the 'Point', and Heinz Field
from Mt. Washington.

We took the Monongahela Incline up to Mt. Washington.
 A unique and useful feature of the Pittsburgh public transit system!

We also had some time earlier in the weekend for an out-of-town excursion to tour Frank Loyd Wright's famous Fallingwater and a short hike at Ohiopyle State Park.

Fallingwater is built over a waterfall on Bear Run Creek.

Cucumber Falls at Ohiopyle State Park.

The Youghiogheny River Gorge, nicknamed the 'Yough',  is a whitewater
recreational paradise.