July 9, 2015 Walk on the beach, Lighthouse and Cheese Factory

Thursday, July 9, 2015 Walk on the beach, Lighthouse and Cheese Factory

We did start out the morning with a 5.5 mile walk on the beach followed by biscuits and gravy yum……

After showers our first stop was at the Cape Meares Lighthouse.  This is the smallest lighthouse that I have ever seen.  On our way down to the lighthouse we stopped at some overlooks to view the different seabirds that nest along the cliffs. The information board stated that the jumpers which are 3 weeks old baby birds actually jump from their nests down the cliff into the ocean below.  Some hit the rocks below and die and others fly and make it and join their father who takes care of them for the next 6-8 weeks.  Crazy!!!! After the lighthouse but in the same area was an Octopus Tree.  It is a Sitka Spruce.  It is 46 feet in circumference, limbs go out 16 feet before going upward.  It is 105 feet tall and has no central trunk.  It is estimated to be 250-300 years old.  No one seems to know why it has formed this way.  This was a strange sight.

Oregon like California charges you 5 cent per bottle or can so we had been saving ours so we could return them and get our money back. We had 2 big bags full. We stopped by Safeway Grocery to do some shopping and return the recyclables. We had to put them in a machine one at a time. It really was not worth the effort. In California they weighed them or counted them and paid you. That was a better solution.  We agreed that we would just put them into the recycle bin and let them deal with getting paid for them.  

Our next stop was the Tillamook Cheese Factory. We did some cheese tasting then spent time in the gift shop and store. That had a café so we decided to have a late lunch of grilled cheese sandwiches and soup. We split this because we had to make sure we had room for fresh made ice cream. It was really worth the stop. We did walk out of there with cheese, yogurt, candy and fudge. What a great day.

We headed back to the campground and just chilled for the rest of the day.

The right side of the beach-pretty misty and not very clear

Jellyfish all over the beach

These white specks are broken sand dollars 

Majestic Bald Eagle

A young eagle

Indiana Jeff

Beachcombing find for the day

Natural Bridges

Close up of one of two natural bridges called Symons

Oceanside

Cliffs were the seabirds nest

This reminds me of a hat

Meares Lighthouse

Octopus Tree

Concrete Bridge

Cow facts

Jeff and his ice cream

Morningstar