Oregon Trip, Day 4: Want some Cheese with that Lighthouse?
Day 4 held the promise of the one thing I'd been looking forward too the most - the tour of the Tillamook Cheese factory.
Cheese, Cheese, Cheese, Fudge and Ice Cream
I have a strange passion for Tillamook Cheese. I only buy Tillamook, as I've convinced myself it is the best kind of cheese. They make a 3 year aged, extra sharp white cheddar that's to die for. If I could only have one cheese for the rest of my life that's the cheese I'd pick. That and a really tart green apple are the perfect lunch. Oh, be quiet. I like cheese.
Anyway, I really, really wanted to go to Tillamook and explore the birthplace of my favorite cheese, so we did. First we had lunch at the Tillamook Farmhouse Cafe, during said lunch I had, oh that's right, a grilled cheese sandwich. It was delicious. Tasted extra Tillamooky.
Then we went on a tour of the factory. You walk up through a self guided observation area and watch them cut 42 lb blocks of cheese into different sizes and package them. It was really interesting. Good signs, so lots to read and think about. I actually learned a lot about cheese, though I won't bore you with the details here. (You're welcome.)
When the tour was over we got to sample various kinds of Tillamook cheese, we bought few treats in the gift shop, including a Tillamook fudge and then we went to the Tillamook ice cream counter for a treat. I had a scoop of Sticky Bun ice cream, which is way out of the box for me, so I was proud of myself for busting out. It was a lot of fun and everyone seemed to genuinely enjoy it, though the girls insisted on holding their noses to and from the car and made sure we knew how much this place smelled like cows.
Here's an interesting fact Tillamook has 4400 people and 26,000 cows, so really, its bound to be a little smelly.
Cape Meares Lighthouse
After the tour, we drove a few miles to Cape Meares to tour the lighthouse. It is Oregon's shortest lighthouse, but that's probably because its situated on Oregon's most ginourmous cliff. You don't need to be huge when you live on top of the world. It is a cute little lighthouse and it was fun to hike down to it. Unfortunately, you can no longer go up and look at the lenses, because in January of this year, some idiot went up there with a gun and shot a bunch of them out.
The original, made in France in 1867, special kind of antique, can't be replaced lenses shot out. The damage is so extensive, they no longer think its safe to have people walking around up there, until they can get the glass stabilized. They can't be repaired, so they are hoping to get enough money one day to replace them with acrylic lenses. In the meantime, you go outside and look at the shattered lenses and marvel at the total stupidity and disrespect of our species.
The girls wanted to know why someone would do that. I have no answer except to say, people are really stupid sometimes.
Octopus Tree
After the lighthouse, we hiked up to look at the Octopus Tree. It is a single Sitka pine with about 8 trunks growing out of it's base. It is a beautiful tree and a nice, short simple hike.
We made it back to the beach house and had a take it easy night. We grilled some hamburgers, watched a really stupid movie (Leap Year, lame), fed the seagull and went to bed.
Cheese, Cheese, Cheese, Fudge and Ice Cream
I have a strange passion for Tillamook Cheese. I only buy Tillamook, as I've convinced myself it is the best kind of cheese. They make a 3 year aged, extra sharp white cheddar that's to die for. If I could only have one cheese for the rest of my life that's the cheese I'd pick. That and a really tart green apple are the perfect lunch. Oh, be quiet. I like cheese.
Anyway, I really, really wanted to go to Tillamook and explore the birthplace of my favorite cheese, so we did. First we had lunch at the Tillamook Farmhouse Cafe, during said lunch I had, oh that's right, a grilled cheese sandwich. It was delicious. Tasted extra Tillamooky.
Then we went on a tour of the factory. You walk up through a self guided observation area and watch them cut 42 lb blocks of cheese into different sizes and package them. It was really interesting. Good signs, so lots to read and think about. I actually learned a lot about cheese, though I won't bore you with the details here. (You're welcome.)
When the tour was over we got to sample various kinds of Tillamook cheese, we bought few treats in the gift shop, including a Tillamook fudge and then we went to the Tillamook ice cream counter for a treat. I had a scoop of Sticky Bun ice cream, which is way out of the box for me, so I was proud of myself for busting out. It was a lot of fun and everyone seemed to genuinely enjoy it, though the girls insisted on holding their noses to and from the car and made sure we knew how much this place smelled like cows.
Here's an interesting fact Tillamook has 4400 people and 26,000 cows, so really, its bound to be a little smelly.
Cape Meares Lighthouse
After the tour, we drove a few miles to Cape Meares to tour the lighthouse. It is Oregon's shortest lighthouse, but that's probably because its situated on Oregon's most ginourmous cliff. You don't need to be huge when you live on top of the world. It is a cute little lighthouse and it was fun to hike down to it. Unfortunately, you can no longer go up and look at the lenses, because in January of this year, some idiot went up there with a gun and shot a bunch of them out.
The original, made in France in 1867, special kind of antique, can't be replaced lenses shot out. The damage is so extensive, they no longer think its safe to have people walking around up there, until they can get the glass stabilized. They can't be repaired, so they are hoping to get enough money one day to replace them with acrylic lenses. In the meantime, you go outside and look at the shattered lenses and marvel at the total stupidity and disrespect of our species.
The girls wanted to know why someone would do that. I have no answer except to say, people are really stupid sometimes.
Octopus Tree
After the lighthouse, we hiked up to look at the Octopus Tree. It is a single Sitka pine with about 8 trunks growing out of it's base. It is a beautiful tree and a nice, short simple hike.
We made it back to the beach house and had a take it easy night. We grilled some hamburgers, watched a really stupid movie (Leap Year, lame), fed the seagull and went to bed.
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