Cheese, Cheese and Wine

Day 22: July 18, 2009 – Portland, OR to Tillamook, OR and back
A small tour

We woke up in Portland this morning unsure of where we would end up sleeping tonight. We had messaged a few Seattle residents about crashing their couch but had not heard any confirmation that we would have a place. So we passed it by our Portland hosts that if we hadn’t heard anything by 3:00 we’d come back to their place to crash. That being settled we made our west toward Tillamook to enjoy some cheese.
Arriving in Tillamook, OR we struggled to find the Tillamook factory but continually saw signage for Blue Heron French Cheese Factory. Determined to find the cheese factory that is the namesake of this small Oregon town we eventually pulled up to the Tillamook Cheese Factory. We entered the factory eager to try some cheese and eat some cheese curds. Easily, that goal was accomplished so we then proceeded to watch the process of making cheese. Machines slicing, people slicing, people bagging, conveyer belts moving, cheese bagged, cheese done. Conveniently, this factory not only had large windows for viewing but also TWO ice cream counters, one was even located near us at the very moment we were watching cheese be packaged! So, as any sane couple would do, we stood and line and ordered our malt and waffle cone and promptly made our way to the Blue Heron French Cheese factory.

The Blue Heron is an exciting place because they offer not only great cheese and wine, but also a petting zoo and great photo opportunities. We began our Blue Heron experience with our first wine tasting where we discovered Pomegranate and Pear wines that were refreshingly sweet. From wine to cheese, we enjoyed a sampling of Herb and Garlic Brie. Having lived as if we were highly cultured we made our way to the “photo-booths” where we became a cow and a donkey.

All cheesed out, we found ourselves downtown – Melissa on the computer and Mike napping. After catching up on the internet and CouchSurfing request we reloaded ourselves in the car and headed back to Portland. The kind souls that our hosts were they waited for us to be back in their home before the four of us made our way to the Mississippi Area where we enjoyed some beverages, pizza, and live music – PLUS, the company of our good friend Chris Livingston who also hails from Laramie and just happened to be in the Portland area. Having our fill of Portland nightlife we returned to our temporary home and crashed, hardcore on the wonderful air mattress.