Trip #572 Grimes Avenue, Knoxville, Pittsburgh took place on April 7, 2021, and was published on April 12, 2021.
The boy who pointed me in the direction of the stairs stays on his front porch, dribbling a basketball and watching me. It’s a look of polite curiosity, and knowing he’s there reassures me as I plunge into the overgrown ruin of red bricks and concrete. The steady thud of leather on wood offers a backbeat to the call-and-response birdsong melodies. I’m surrounded by green and brown with flashes of red and blue, yellow and orange, and the air is warm and damp. The smell reminds me of worms, which explains the abundance of birds. From where I stand, halfway down, halfway up, I can see it’s a lovely spot, hidden and mysterious. And in less than a month, it’ll be impassable and closed off to anyone without a machete. But to hack through it would be to destroy its charm, its spirit, so best to savor it now, during these in-between days, before we tip from one season to the next. I slowly make my way back to the street, and the boy is still there. I thank him for his help, and he smiles and nods his head like a wise old sage—a quiet guardian keeping time.
Field Notes: You’d never know this flight was there! It’s very overgrown at its two entrance points without any signs of a concrete path leading to it. I never would have found it if the boy who lives at the house alongside it hadn’t pointed me in the right direction. Fortuitous encounter!
Love city steps? Get yourself the latest issue of Mis.Steps: Our Missed Connections with Pittsburgh’s City Steps! Each copy is unique and features 10 randomly selected “trading cards” of Pittsburgh’s 739 public stairways. Visit the Mis.Steps online store to see all issues and place your order.
Want to visit these stairs? You can locate them on the Pittsburgh City Steps Plan website!
Be a good neighbor! Have you visited these stairs and found them in poor condition or that illegal dumping (large items like tires, old furniture, and construction debris) and trash were abundant in the area? There are two things you can do to take action and make our city steps cleaner and safer for everyone! First, grab a photo if you can, and submit a report to Pittsburgh 311. All problems, both broken stairs, and railings, as well as trash and dumping, should be reported to the city. You can easily do this online or by calling.
