Highland Park

Pittsburgh is often defined by its industrial past, but in recent decades the city has undergone a complete transformation. More so now than ever, Pittsburgh is investing in its green spaces, particularly its five major municipal parks of which Highland Park is the oldest. Located on the city’s east end, Highland Park offers visitors nearly everything they could want in a park, from large playgrounds to a public pool, and much more.

The first thing visitors encounter upon entering the park is the beautiful entry garden. Built in the 1890’s, the garden has been modified several times over the years, and is currently considered one of the finest outdoor spaces in Pittsburgh due to the hard work of the Parks Conservancy and local volunteers. Venture further into the park and you will encounter another unique feature of Highland Park, a large reservoir that sits smack dab in the middle of everything. People from all over the city are drawn to the surprisingly relaxing body of water to take a pleasant a stroll around its perimeter or relax on a bench and look out over the water. Perhaps somewhat surprisingly, the reservoir is still fully functional, and provides water to nearly the entire east end of the city.

While the reservoir is cool, maybe you're more interested in straying off the beaten path. Highland Park has many trails that wind up and down through the hills and the woods. Among the most popular trails runs the Babbling Brook attached to a small waterfall that was created to clean runoff water from the reservoir. Perhaps the best feature of all the trails in Highland Park is that while you feel like you are deep into the woods, in reality you are never far from many of the parks main attractions.

Among Pittsburgh’s municipal parks, Highland Park is unmatched in the number of activities it offers to the community. From bike trails to beach volleyball courts, there is something in the park for just about everyone. The two most popular elements of the park are the public pool, which is open from Memorial Day until Labor Day, and the Super Playground, which is open all year long. The Highland Park pool is one of the most beloved pools in Pittsburgh. Not only is it the largest pool in the city, but it also offers swim lessons, hosts swim meets, and routinely puts together community events. The Super Playground is another element of the park that the community has embraced. Built in the 1990's as a community project, the playground was designed in part by the children that would eventually play there. Complete with slides, monkey bars, and everything else a kid could want, the wooden features and castle like design give the playground a certain rustic charm that is difficult to find elsewhere. On top of the pool, playground, trails, and reservoir, the parks conservancy routinely hosts community events throughout the park including group yoga and gardening.