Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve: Meadowview/Woodland Loop (Blog Hike #641)

Trails: Spring Hollow, Meadowview, Woodland, Goldenrod, and Upper Fields Trails

Hike Location: Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve

Geographic Location: northeast of Pittsburgh, PA (40.54265, -79.90589)

Length: 1.5 miles

Difficulty: 3/10 (Easy/Moderate)

Date Hiked: July 2017

Overview: A short rolling loop through reverting farmland.

Reserve Information: http://www.aswp.org/pages/beechwood

Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=733047
Photo Highlight:

Directions to the trailhead: From the intersection of SR 8 and SR 28 in Etna, take SR 8 north 0.5 miles to Kittanning Street.  Turn right on Kittanning Street, which becomes Dorseyville Road after it leaves Etna.  Drive a total of 4.4 miles from SR 8 to the signed reserve parking lot on the left.  The parking lot was in the process of being expanded on my visit.

The hike: Originally known as Evans Nature Center, tiny Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve protects 134 acres of reverting farmland on the northeast side of suburban Pittsburgh.  The reserve is owned by the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, which received the land as a donation from Mrs. John F. Walton, Jr. and Mr. and Mrs. Joshua C. Whetzel, Jr. in 1977, and it is maintained by the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania.  Before it became a nature reserve, the land was operated between 1903 and 1924 as a farm by State Senator William Flinn, one of Pittsburgh’s most powerful politicians of the late 1800’s.  SR 8 that you drove in on also bears Flinn’s name.

            The nature reserve’s first building was completed in 1979, and its present headquarters were built in 1989.  The reserve features 9 trails that total over 5 miles, and the trail system offers many possible hiking routes.  Though not the longest possible route, the hike suggested here samples both the meadow and forest habitats that comprise Beechwood Farms Nature Reserve.

            On a personal note, my ancestors emigrated from Bavaria, Germany to the Pittsburgh area in 1848, and the farm they settled on was located only a few miles from here.  I have three generations of ancestors buried in nearby Greenwood Cemetery.  As I hiked this tract of reverting farmland on a sultry hot summer day, I could not help but think of my great grandparents trying to eek out a living on a steep, rocky plot of land similar to this one.

            Before you hit the trail, stop in the Nature Center to pick up a trail map.  The trails at Beechwood Farms are marked only by tall posts at intersections, and the large number of trails packed into a fairly small area ensures that you will have plenty of opportunities to take a wrong turn.  On the bright side, the reserve’s small size makes it far more likely to become temporarily misplaced than seriously lost.

Start of Spring Hollow Trail

            Start on the Spring Hollow Trail, a packed gravel trail that goes in front of and to the left of the reserve’s education building.  The trail map incorrectly shows the Spring Hollow Trail starting behind the Nature Center with two other trails.  The trail climbs gradually through a more sunny than shady reverting farm field.  Meadow environments such as this one make for excellent wildlife viewing, which included deer and ground hogs on my hike.  Numerous benches appear beside the trails at Beechwood Farms, and more benches were under construction during my visit.

Bench under construction

            At 0.2 miles, you reach an intersection with the Meadowview Trail, a grassy trail that goes right and left.  Turn left to leave the gravel Spring Hollow Trail and begin the Meadowview Trail.  Almost immediately you cross an asphalt driveway that leads to a private residence.

The trail descends gradually, and at 0.3 miles the Pine Hollow Trail exits left.  The 0.9 mile Pine Hollow Trail is Beechwood Farms’ longest and most primitive trail, but it was heavily encumbered by tall grass and downed trees on my visit.  The Pine Hollow Trail rejoins the Meadowview Trail in only another 400 feet along the Meadowview Trail, so feel free to explore the Pine Hollow Trail if trail conditions are better on your visit.

Pump House

            After the Pine Hollow Trail rejoins our route, the trail curves right as it approaches the power line that services the private residence mentioned above.  Just past the power line stands an old green wooden pump house, a relic from this land’s farming days.  The rusty pump still sits in the pump house for your inspection and observation.  Apple trees scattered throughout the reverting meadow provide more reminders of this land’s agricultural past.

Trail intersection on Meadowview Trail

            The trail climbs slightly and re-crosses the asphalt driveway before reaching an intersection with the Woodland Trail.  We will eventually turn left to hike the Woodland Trail, but first continue straight and look to the left for the reserve’s “treehouse:” a wooden overlook built over a deep ravine.  The platform’s height lifts you well into the forest’s canopy, thus giving you the feel that you are in a treehouse.  Note that the trail map has another error here: it places this “treehouse” in the wrong spot.

Tree Top Lookout

            Back at the Woodland Trail junction, turn right (coming from this direction) to begin the Woodland Trail, which as its name implies leaves the meadow and enters the woods.  The dirt Woodland Trail is the steepest and narrowest trail in the reserve, and it starts with a steep descent into a nice pine planting with a dense understory of ferns.  As a power line near the reserve’s northwest boundary comes into view, the trail curves right and undulates.  When you move away from the power line, traffic from nearby Harts Run Road becomes audible.  Thus, reminders of this reserve’s suburban setting are ever-present on the Woodland Trail.

            Just past 1 mile into the hike, the Woodland Trail ends at an intersection with the Spring Hollow Trail.  Turn left to rejoin the gravel Spring Hollow Trail just before it crosses Harts Run on a nice wooden footbridge.  The trail follows the upper reaches of Harts Run upstream to reach a man-made pond.  A wooden pavilion built beside the pond provides an opportunity to sit and observe the pond’s wildlife, which included a large turtle and some Canada geese on my visit.  Unfortunately, some approaching thunder caused me to cut my stay at the pond short.

Pond on Harts Run

            Turn right at the pavilion to cross the pond’s dam and begin the Goldenrod Trail, which continues your uphill journey back toward the Nature Center.  A member of the aster family, goldenrod is a common meadow flower found on this reserve.  At the next intersection, angle left to continue uphill on the Upper Fields Trail, which comes out behind the Nature Center and the parking area.  I made it back to my car just in time: a thunderstorm unleashed a torrential downpour on my car only seconds later.