We stopped at the Tillamook Cheese Factory, and as soon as we stepped out of the van we were punched in the face by the smell of dairy waste. Oh, and it was raining. The factory was not operating at the time of our visit, so there wasn't much to see (although people wearing white suits with hair nets walking around isn't the height of excitement either, is it?). What was open that day was a gift shop, cheese tasting area and ice cream shop. We, you know, bought some postcards, sampled some, like, cheese and had, ahem, a little ice cream. Then we put Tillamook in our rearview mirror.
Up to this point I was thinking Tillamook County is kind of low on the 30-something county scale; above Polk County but way below Curry County. A few days later was passed through again and this time picked up some brie from the Blue Heron Cheese Company, along with a baguette and some Italian salami...if you know what I mean.
We had this food,a full tank of gas, and Throwing Muses was in the tape deck. Yeah that's what I said; a tape deck. VW is usually slow in adapting new technology, just to make sure it isn't a flash in the pan. A Highway 6 sign caught my eye and I decided that since we have not been this way, we will today. Highway 6 follows the Wilson River into the Tillamook State Forest. The grown ups up in front got to recalling something about the 'Tillamook Burn' and wondering aloud when it happened, how it started, etc. It's hard to inspire children with a bunch of maybe and sort of facts about a possible fire that occurred maybe where we were, or maybe not. At this moment of wondering, the Tillamook Forest Center magically appears.
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| 1964 photo shows the lingering effects of the fire. No trees. |
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| Newer photo showing trees have returned. |
I never knew it existed, but it is there to tell me the history of the Tillamook State Forest. The 'Burn' occurred in 1933 due to logging in extremely dry conditions and the fire was huge. The burn was actually multiple wildfires at 6 year intervals, becoming known as the '6 year jinx'. The state forest was created by foreclosures, due to loss of timber and the Depression. I was inspired by how Oregonians worked together in replanting the burn and making improvements in firefighting. The last fire was in 1951 and it was much much smaller than the previous fires.
If just one person reads this and enters the cheesemaking profession, my blog is a success. And I hope that no one starts a huge wildfire to bring people together because of this blog.
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