This is spring break, and I have spent most of it reading my sci fi series by Kate Forsyth while Mark has been making good progress on his paper. Today we decided it was time for a trip- our first stop: a local cheese factory. The Cedar Grove Cheese Co. has a six man operation- that is six certified cheese makers. Mark and I have made cheese at home using natural acids (like lemon juice) to curdle the cheese. On our tour we saw a machine to heat up the milk enough to kill any bacteria and then cools it back down before returning the pastrerized milk. Next were the large vats heated on the sides and bottom with steam. The cheese makers were just starting to cut the pudding like cheese with knives to evenly cut the curd. Next large spatula-like paddles were placed in the vats to stir the curd. We also got to see a vat in the final stages of seperating the whey from the curds, the workers pushed the curds to either side of the vat to "squeeze" out as much whey as possible.

All that extra whey (only 1/10th of the originial milk is used as cheese) is drained off into large tubs inside a greenhouse. These tubs contain hungry bacteria eager to eat all of the solids. Having put together a pond with my dad, I was very impressed with their effecient setup. It takes three days of rotating through three different tanks to produce clean water. I was surprised that more plants weren't used in teh cleaning process- I remember a tour at a human waste treatment facility, and water hyacinths were used to purify the water as it settles in large holding ponds. At Cedar Grove, the "sludge" is placed out on surrounding farmlands to enrich the soil. A really amazing process. Without this setup, the cheese factory would have to store their waste in holding tanks and have the waste water picked up weakly.

After picking up some sharp cheddar and calmer colby, we headed up the road for Natural Bridge State Park. Just a short walk took us to the Natrual Bridge carved out of sandstone with a roomy cave underneath. All the striking formations we see along the highway are also made of this stronger sandstone! As we walked around we saw many signs with information about herbs and their uses- I can't wait to come back when the plants are green and map them in memory. After a tuna fish sandwich picnic we headed home along the scenic back roads.

After a fun morning in the country I headed out to horseriding. Today I got to ride Queenie- a lovely flea bitten gray with a wonderful temperment. While she was a bit bouncy, she responded wonderfully to leg pressure and we had a great time!