We had a hankerin’ for some cheese curds on Sunday and with the weather so clear and and warm and tourist season pretty much over we decided to make a run to Tillamook. We got an early start so the trip over the coast range was a bit cool but still very refreshing and beautiful.
The drive takes you through the Tillamook Forest and along the Wilson River to the Tillamook Bay and the Tillamook Creamery.
Once at the creamery, we did some cheese tasting, picked up a supply of cheese curds, bought a bit of fudge and had some Ice Cream. All this took about 30 minutes. Back in the car we were heading for the river and reminded of the downside of driving in the Oregon Forests.
Logging really leaves the landscape scarred for many years and causes serious damage to the river habitat. And they wonder why the native salmon populations are declining. The up side is that you can still find beautiful pristine place along the river such as this.
The water here was about fifteen feet deep and crystal clear. Once we found this spot, I started regretting not having a change of clothes. I could have easily joined the dog for a swim. We stopped at a few other spots along the river and each one had it’s own surprise for us. This spot had extremeley deep pools and some nice rapids as well as lots of exposed rock to hike around on.
Mac was just swimming in place and didn’t want to get out of the water when we decided to leave. We had to walk back toward the car and once we were out of site in the brush, he came looking to make sure we didn’t leave him behind. It was such a nice day, virtually no traffic on the highway and many little gem spots to stop and play. What a carefree way to spend the day on what may be our last warm, sunny weekend in PDX.
rodger dodger 
Oh man! I love the Tillamook Cheese factory… AND THE CURDS! I was there last March. Can’t wait to go back.
hohoho
I remember going to Wisconsin for curds. I wonder how your curds compare to the cheddar heads in WI.
As always, your photos are brilliant.
Beautiful pictures, Rodger. I’m reminded of the wonderful trip that Mr. Wild One and I took to the area a little over a year ago. He’s from the Roseburg area originally, and we went to his 40th high school reunion. We took two days driving up the Oregon and Washington coasts after the reunion. We didn’t stop at the cheese factory, but I remember driving by. Thanks for triggering some very nice memories.