Your Place in the Country: Trax Farms
Twelve miles south of Pittsburgh in Finleyville, PA—a relatively painless, though admittedly slow, drive down Route 88—lies Trax Farms, a family-run establishment since 1865. It’s one of those places South Hills locals like myself remember visiting as kids to pick strawberries and pumpkins. It’s one of those places South Hills locals who remember these trips take their children, today, to share the fun. Trax provides a variety of events--strawberry festivals, fall festivals, gardening workshops, even a breakfast with Santa—at specific times throughout the year, but with its grocery, garden shop, greenhouse, wine shop, and antique loft to boot, no matter what the season, it’s worth the trip.
The grocery offers produce grown right at Trax (but of course!) as well as a nicely-stocked deli counter, an ample selection of baked goods and treats, and sundry condiments and spices and sauces not often seen in your run-of-the-mill supermarket. And speaking of things one doesn’t see in your typical Pennsylvania supermarket, Trax’s market houses a small wine shop, featuring Arrowhead Wine from North East, PA. Bottles are very reasonably priced, samples offered freely, and for those of you intimidated by the whole wine-buying experience, relax, you’ve come to the right place. Pick up a tasty bottle of the Concord Wine (with hints of real grape jelly) and enjoy it with some of that pasta sauce you put in your basket earlier.
If you’ve already got dinner plans, or gardening’s more your thing, then move on out to the impressive garden shop and greenhouse areas. You want hanging baskets? You’ve got hanging baskets. You want Japanese maples? You’ve got Japanese maples. You want garden gnomes? Well of course you want garden gnomes…and one of those reflective spheres so you can gaze at them as you sit in your backyard. And guess what? You can get them both right here, at Trax. The garden shop is where Trax really shines. Around Christmas time, it transforms into quite the winter wonderland—with fiber optic trees, live pines, a variety of indoor and outdoor lights and decorations, wreaths…well, the list of items may actually rival Santa’s own.
Now, all of these various sections of Trax’s main building are readily apparent to anyone who wanders around for a couple of minutes, but what you might miss, if you don’t look up, is what has quickly become my favorite part of a visit: The Trax Farms Antique Loft. I’m not sure when the loft first opened, but at some point last year, my wife and I noticed a steep wooden staircase leading upwards to what appeared to be…well…appeared to be something, at any rate. So we ascended and found, much to our enjoyment, a very nice collection of old odds and ends. Antique furniture, old clothing, interesting jewelry, retro posters and memorabilia—the loft really does have a little something for everyone. Which is why, when we drove out to Trax last Saturday, I knew I’d find that elusive perfect birthday gift for my dear friend who seemingly already has everything one could want. I’d tell you what I found, but I don’t want to ruin the surprise.
So let me leave you with that little mystery, and my hope that you get a chance to visit “Your place in the country,” Trax Farms.
