Directions: Sledding hill at Boyce Park. Drive in the main gate of Boyce Park, off of Monroeville-Center Road. Go straight for about 1/4 mile towards the ski slope. You can't miss the hill. It's straight ahead of you at a bend in the road, and the the hill is elevated above the road, it IS NOT BELOW THE ROAD! AVOID THE HILLS WITH THE PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT...they're not as conducive to sledding. There is parking on the road right at the hill.

Comments: "BEST SLEDDING HILL IN PITTSBURGH!" The hill is actually on the highest point in Allegheny County (there's a marker if you take a hike into the woods above the hill!) It's a great slope...long run (and long walk back to the top)...clear of brush...steep enough to pick up good speed, but not too steep to scare little ones. I've been going there my whole life...I'm 24 years old and still go out there with my friends on snowy days.

If you make the trek all the way to the top of the hill, you'll gain enough speed to plow into the hay bails at the bottom (hazard), so be ready to bail out or stop. And watch out for others walking up the hill as you sled down. Young people are always building small jumps (>1ft), so keep an eye out for those if you're not willing to catch a little airtime. Also, it can be crowded, so keep an eye out for that, as well. Park closes at sundown (strictly enforced by Allegheny County Police). GREAT PLACE TO GET OUT AND HAVE SOME FUN!

Disclaimer: The webmaster of SledRiding.com is in no way responsible for trespassing (due to false information) and/or injury or death of any person or persons on any hills listed on this website. Go sledding at your own risk.

  

2009 UPDATE: "I (Lisa) was at Boyce Park on Monday, January 19, 2009 and this sledding hill was marked as closed. 'No Sledding' signs, about 6, in front and on the hill. The following email statement was given on January 26, 2009 by Clarence Hopson, Deputy Director of Recreation:"

"Ms. Mears, I am in receipt of your question regarding Boyce Park sledding. The sled riding hill was closed this year because of a pending lawsuit regarding an injury. We were advised by the Law Department to close the hill. Thank you for your interest in the Allegheny County Parks."

2009 WEBMASTER UPDATE: Here's an article that ran in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2009 by Torsten Ove.

"Suit prompts Boyce to close sledding site. Turtle Creek woman says she broke back. This hill in Boyce Park is now peppered with "no sledding" signs. Generations of winter fun are done at Boyce Park. A big hill popular with sledders for at least four decades is closed because of a lawsuit brought by a woman who broke her back there two years ago. Longtime sled enthusiasts are irritated at the "no sledding" signs posted by the county a few months ago. Mark Miller, 52, of Murrysville, is among many who used to go sledding there as a boy and later took his sons there, too. "Why can't the county simply post a sign to 'sled at your own risk'?" he said. Bob Borgoyne, assistant solicitor for Allegheny County, said the problem with the hill is that there's a road at the bottom. Hay bales have been stacked there for as long as anyone can remember to keep people from flying out onto it, but he said the slope is still a hazard. "We can't keep it safe, so we'll try to keep people off of it," he said. The hay bales, and not the hill itself, are at issue in a county suit brought last March by Stacey Rae Kelly of Turtle Creek. On Feb. 11, 2007, she said she slammed into a frozen hay bale at the bottom and broke her back, both legs and both ankles. She said she didn't know the bales were frozen solid and blamed the county, Monroeville and Plum. Parts of the park are in both communities, but the county owns it. For that reason, the two municipalities have been dismissed as defendants, but the suit will proceed against the county. Ms. Kelly's lawyer, Mary Ann Lewis, said her client would have no comment. But she said Ms. Kelly, who was 26 at the time of the accident, has undergone seven surgeries and only recently was able to start walking again. The suit is asking for various damages for medical costs, pain and suffering and lost wages from her job as a medical assistant at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Meanwhile, sledding on Boyce's most popular hill is history, much to the consternation of veterans who point out that people have been getting banged up on the hill since the 1970s."

Besides that article in the local paper, many folks who aren't happy about the sledding hill closing have aired their views to me. Once such email came into this website recently from Joy in Pittsburgh which read: "Someone should sue Stacey Rae Kelly for forcing the county to close Boyce Park. Generations of Pittsburghers have safely sledded there for decades, and because of her selfishness and the fact that she's not smart to ditch a sled that's headed for an obstacle, thousands of Pittsburghers who know how to safely sled are now going to have to sled someplace more dangerous."

All others can air their input on this sledding hill matter on a "free to post" Topix forum on this topic here. There is no registration needed to comment.

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