Friday, July 25, 2014

The Oregon Coast - Tillamook Cheese Factory

(Seaside, OR) Hi 66 Lo 54 -- The weather was beautiful today, a nice change from the last two days of rain. We set out on a nice 40-mile drive down the coast on U.S. 101 to the Tillamook Cheese Factory. Several of our friends said it was worth seeing. Along the way there’s lots to see, and we stopped at several pullouts to marvel at the beautiful coastal views.  (Click on the pictures to enlarge them.)

About seven miles from our RV park is Cannon Beach, which is known for one of the major sights on the Oregon coast, Haystack Rock.

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There were huge rocks all along the coast.
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This light house was quite a ways off shore on a small rock of its own.
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The ocean was calm and the water deep blue.
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I got to pick some blackberries. I haven’t seen this is a very long time.
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We saw a sign for the Nehalem Winery, so of course we had to stop. I did some tasting, and then bought a plum flavored wine.
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Our next stop was the Tillamook Cheese Factory. It's quite well known in these parts and a very popular tourist attraction.
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 It was very crowded today, especially for a week day.
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The 'tour' was self-guided and consisted of looking through large observation windows down onto the production line. This is where they cut the big blocks of cheese into smaller blocks and package it. Everything really did look this yellow. I think the glass in the windows was yellow.
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This is the area where the cheese is aged in big tanks.
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We stopped at a seaside grill for lunch on the way back. I had a halibut sandwich (again) and Jim had a burger (again). The food was good, but boy is food expensive around here! Our two sandwiches (no drinks, just water) cost $26.00. With tip, that's a $30 lunch. That's about what we like to spend for dinner. The only good point is, there's no sales tax in Oregon.

It was a good day of travel and checking out the coast. Hwy 101 is a very scenic road, and well traveled.

See you tomorrow.

7 comments:

Gypsy said...

Did you get a chance to buy Tilamook at the factory? It's the only cheese I buy, and now they make pretty good ice cream as well.

Tumbleweed Dee said...

We bought curds and the colby/sharp cheese. We can't get that kind out west. Love it

Unknown said...

Did you cut the cheese while you were there? .... lol

Myrddin said...

We really like the Oregon coast and head out there every time we visit our son in Portland. It is expensive, especially in the Seaside area.

Have fun,

Jim and Linda

owensontheroad said...

Our favorite was the grilled cheese sandwich, and tomato soup. Of course we always had some ice cream too. Marionberry!

Budd said...

The factory was really crowded the weekday we were there, too. From their parking setup it's obvious that they have ongoing crowds.

How'd you like the Tillamook smell? Not sure I could take that day in/out. My uncle raised beef cattle and it was enough just working on his farm. It was much worse around dairy farms in the area.

Bob and Jo said...

Eating out is expensive out here that is for sure.

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