We got started on today’s adventures at 8:45. Our first stop was at Seaside OR, where we tried to find Lewis and Clark’s salt works. This is where some of the Corps worked day and night for many months, boiling saltwater to extract the salt to cure their meat for the trip back east. We drove by it a couple of times before we finally saw the small sign. The salt works look like a fenced garden in someone’s back yard. It was interesting to see this.
Our next stop was Ecola St Park. After driving through beautiful a beautiful sitka spruce tree forest for 4 miles, we came out on a large viewpoint overlooking the many miles of Cannon Beach and Haystack Rock. There was a pretty walk to the end of the peninsula with great views of big rocks that sometimes hold lots of seals (but not today). We also saw Tillamook Rock Lighthouse which is no longer a lighthouse but a wanna-be columbarium. Click on the link for the whole story which continues to this day. I got some great photos, one of which is today’s photo.
We drove a short ways back down the highway and through Cannon Beach town. This is filled with cutsy shops, restaurants, bed and breakfasts. At the end of Cannon Beach we pulled into Tolovana Beach Wayside to get a good look at the seven mile beach and Haystack Rock. And then we stopped at Neahkahnie Beach Viewpoint for another gorgeous look down the coast. A lot of route 101 is inland with various viewpoints over-looking the ocean.
We finally reached the Disneyland of Cheese – Tillamook Cheese Factory. The huge parking lot was filling up fast. We went in and had lunch in their Farmhouse Café – grilled cheese, of course. I had mine with bacon and tomato, and Bill had his with tiny shrimp. It wasn’t bad. Then we walked through their factory which has windows overlooking the factory floor. We mainly saw them cutting and packaging some sort of white cheese. We got Tillamook ice cream cones, did a little shopping, and then headed on south.
Bill really wanted to see the Tillamook Air museum. This is an old blimp hanger that is enormous and houses lots of old WW II airplanes. I was just impressed with the hanger itself – over 1000’ long and 190’ high, all made out of wood with some concrete supports for the enormous doors. There were two of these hangers here, but in 1992 one of the hangers was destroyed by fire (while storing tons of hay!!!!).
On the way home we stopped in Tillamook at the La Providensia Taqueria for a taco snack. This was Bill’s idea. They were small tacos ($1.50 each), and it was an experience.
We came on back to the RV rather tired of all the driving today. Tomorrow we will be going back down the same route only we will be going 90 miles farther to Waldport.
I've been to the Tillamook Cheese Factory! Fun.
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