Spring Hill Mosaics to Penn Brewery or Scratch & Co: A T&M Pittsburgh Steps & Dine Hike
April 16, 2026
There is no better time than the spring for a Pittsburgh City Steps Hike to see several beautiful tile mosaics in Spring Hill. These include a free-standing mosaic wall, mosaic row houses, and whimsical pigeons arrayed along a cliff bottom. And it's thanks to Linda Wallen, a local artist committed to beautifying our communities. Penn Brewery is on the way back down to River Ave, making for a convenient dog-friendly lunch spot. And on Sundays, try stopping by Scratch & Co for a delicious brunch.
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| View from Goehring near Vista, 05/22 |
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| Diana St steps, 06/24 |
Pittsburgh is known as the City of Bridges, crossing over rivers and ravines, and over 800 public staircases that vertically bridge different neighborhoods. After moving into the city, we are constantly discovering new views, both grand and intimate, as we walk the city steps.
A few years ago, we noted colorful birds decorating the base of a steep rock cliff rising sharply up from Itin St.
Then, we took a steps hike with a Facebook group, and discovered a row of three Yetta St. houses, with a fourth nearby, whose ground level and staircase walls were covered with mosaics.
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| Yetta St Mosaic Houses, 09/24 |
As our eyes sharpened, we recognized a common artistic hand behind these, and other mosaics discovered elsewhere in Spring Hill and Spring Garden. A bit of research revealed that local artist Linda Wallen was involved in all these projects, and that the racing pigeons reflect the German heritage of the area.
Whereas our Mosaic Stairway hike in the Southside is centered around steps art created using Italian tiles, according to her blog, Linda Wallen took her inspiration from a trip to Barcelona, Spain.
It's a lot of fun to see the different elements incorporated into her mosaics -- with new discoveries each time -- from depictions of old springs that give the neighborhood its name, to a toy dog or memorial message incorporated into the mosaic by students working with her.
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| View of Spring Hill Mural, Voegtly Spring, and old Firehall (now housing the Steel City Boxing Association) from Stein St steps |
We have taken friends and neighbors on several variations of this mosaic hike on weekends, often followed by lunch in the outdoor courtyard of Penn Brewery.
After describing a basic hike passing most of the mosaics, some variations are presented. This includes a detour past a secret mosaic my husband found that is completely obscured by vegetation for most of the year.
Another variation involves staying up in Troy Hill for Sunday brunch at one of our favorite neighborhood restaurants, Scratch & Co. If you are lucky, the Gallery Closed exhibits in this loop will be back up.
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| "Fireman" steps looking up from Vinial St, 09/24 |
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