A Gonzo Gallop Through California’s Thanksgiving Madcap: Turkey, Trails Tales

In the land of perpetual sun and the ever-echoing mantra of Westward, ho!’, preparing for Thanksgiving is not for the feeble-minded or tradition-bound. This is California where innovation dresses in drag and eccentricity is as common as a Hollywood starlet sighting.

Forget your oven-roasted bird and make way for Tofurkey on Venice Beach (1800 Ocean Front Walk, Venice, CA 90291), where muscular vegans bench press while watching waves that never tire. The Pacific purrs like a contented lion as you chow down on plant-based feasts from food trucks with names that could double as indie bands. It's here amidst the roller skaters and boardwalk prophets that you realize Pilgrims got nothing on Californian pioneers.

For those who worship at the altar of organic produce, head north to Earthbound Farm Stand (7250 Carmel Valley Rd., Carmel-By-The-Sea, CA 93923). Gather your harvest beneath an autumnal sky so blue it seems stolen from a Spielberg set; think 'Close Encounters' but with artichokes and heirloom turkeys named after Beat poets. You can almost hear Ginsberg howling between rows of kale — something about supermarkets in California dreaming.

But let’s crank this roadster into high gear and hit up Surf City for a slice of Americana served with a twist—The Santa Cruz Turkey Trot (Santa Cruz Boardwalk, Santa Cruz, CA 95060). Here running shoes replace pilgrim buckles in this footrace by the sea—a quirky nod to health culture nestled firmly against deep-fried Twinkies from nearby stands. As Steinbeck might say if he were commentating: "It's Cannery Row meets Chariots of Fire."

Can't tether yourself to dry land? Join Alcatraz Island’s Indigenous Peoples Sunrise Gathering (Alcatraz Island, San Francisco Bay Area, CA 94133). In stark contrast with traditional celebrations which paint Pilgrims in saintly hues against Native American savagery — here’s real history alive with drumbeats echoing off prison walls once housing Capone.

Not bizarre enough yet? Venture into wine country wilds for Safari West’s "Thanksgiving Adventure" (3115 Porter Creek Road Santa Rosa ,CA95404) - because what better way to toast gratitude than clinking glasses among giraffes?

And lest we forget SoCal desert mystique—it beckons at Joshua Tree National Park(74485 National Park Drive,Twentynine Palms ,CA92277) under constellations older than Plymouth Rock itself. Hike through cactus gardens where U2 found inspiration; there's no better place for existential musings over mankind's penchant for festive gluttony juxtaposed with nature's austere beauty.

As night falls across this great state—from Sierra Nevada peaks to the neon glow enshrouding Sunset Strip lounges—remember Kerouac's benediction upon Big Sur cliffs: One fast move or I'm gone...

Websites:

Venice Beach - http://www.laparks.org/venice

Earthbound Farms - https://www.carmelvalleyranch.com/play-for-all/earthbound-farm

Santa Cruz Turkey Trot - http://www.santacruztrackclub.com/events/turkey-trot/

Alcatraz Cruises - https://www.alcatrazcruises.com/

Safari West - https://www.safariwest.com/

Joshua Tree National Park - https://www.nps.gov/jotr/index.htm

Twitter Handles: