The Friends of Edgewood calendar lists no events at all from Sunday, Nov. 22, through Saturday, Nov. 28. That covers the whole stretch around Thanksgiving, which falls on Thursday, Nov. 26 this year. The preserve at the edge of the neighborhood will be open to walkers, but no one will be leading walks there that week.
So the organized parts of Thanksgiving week in Emerald Hills happen elsewhere. One is a nine-hole course on Wilmington Way. The other is a historic estate about ten minutes up Cañada Road, where the holiday season will already be twelve days old by Thanksgiving morning.
The Saturday Before, on Wilmington Way
On Saturday, Nov. 21, Redwood City Elks Lodge #1991 holds its 3rd Annual Turkey Shoot Scramble at Emerald Hills Golf Course, 938 Wilmington Way. The event page lists the basics:
- Time: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., rain or shine
- Format: four-person team scramble, best ball, with a shotgun start
- Entry: $25 for Elks members, $35 for non-members
- Included: greens fee, food and prizes
- Carts: extra charge, and available only to Elks members, players 50 and up, and people with disabilities
Non-members can enter, and the $10 difference is the only thing that changes for them. The format suits a mixed group. In a best-ball scramble, every player on the team hits, the team plays from the best shot, and a foursome of neighbors with very different handicaps can still keep up. A shotgun start sends every team out at the same time from different holes, so the whole field finishes together and gathers for food and prizes at once. With registration through the lodge's Zeffy page at $25 to $35 a player, it costs less than most rounds on the Peninsula.
The date matters too. The Saturday before Thanksgiving comes before out-of-town guests arrive and before the kitchen takes over the week. For anyone in the neighborhood, getting there means a short drive or a walk.
Why Edgewood Goes Quiet That Week
Edgewood's guided walks are led by docents. Friends of Edgewood offers free hikes that require advance registration on Eventbrite, and it sends the details and meeting place to people who sign up. The group asks hikers to check back often for new dates, so a walk could still turn up for late November. As of now, though, the week of Nov. 22 is blank, and anyone planning a Thanksgiving walk at Edgewood is planning it themselves.
That is a good reason to plan a walk at Edgewood and a scramble on Wilmington Way rather than choosing between them. If the long weekend calls for something longer than an after-dinner loop, Huddart Park at 1100 Kings Mountain Road in Woodside is open for self-guided hiking, and San Mateo County charges $6 per vehicle there. Huddart is also free of the Saturday golf crowd and the Filoli ticket windows.
Up Cañada Road, the Season Opens First
Filoli, at 86 Cañada Road in Woodside, opens its holiday season almost two weeks before Thanksgiving. Parking is free. The season begins with a ticketed Merry & Bright preview night on Friday, Nov. 13, from 6 to 10 p.m. Tickets are $125 for general admission and $195 for VIP, and members get 10% off. Public daytime and evening admission starts the next day.
| Program | Dates | Hours | Tickets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Holiday Daytime | Nov. 14, 2026 to Jan. 10, 2027 | 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. | From $40; free for members |
| Holiday Lights | Nov. 14 to Dec. 11, then Dec. 13, 2026 to Jan. 10, 2027 | 4 to 10 p.m. | From $45; 20% off for members, free for Circle members |
Look closely at the Lights dates. There is no evening session on Saturday, Dec. 12, so anyone planning a December evening visit should pick another date. Daytime admission covers the Historic House, the Garden and Thistlewyck Village, the Christmas village set among Filoli's redwoods. Members can book early entry at 9 a.m.
New this year is the Filoli Family Farm, with miniature cows, goats, sheep, and a mother donkey with her foal. The farm is included with Holiday Daytime admission and runs from Nov. 14 through Jan. 3. Thistlewyck Village also closes on Jan. 3, a full week before Holiday Daytime ends on Jan. 10. For households with young children, the stretch between Thanksgiving and the first weekend of January is when both attractions are open. A visit on Jan. 9 gets the house and garden, but no farm and no village.
A Workshop Timed to the Table
Filoli also links part of its season to Thanksgiving itself. Its Flora Party: Thanksgiving Centerpieces workshop runs Monday, Nov. 23, from 2 to 4 p.m., and Tuesday, Nov. 24, in two sessions, 10 a.m. to noon and 2 to 4 p.m. Tickets are $160 and include general admission, and members get 10% off. Filoli describes it as a chance to create a centerpiece "sure to be the talk of your Thanksgiving table." Because admission is included, an afternoon session can double as a first look at the holiday house and the new farm, with the centerpiece riding home in the back seat two days before it goes on the table.
Wednesday, Downhill
The day before Thanksgiving, the week's most offbeat event sits at the bottom of the hill. The Hiller Aviation Museum's Turkey Toss runs Wednesday, Nov. 25, from 11 a.m. to noon at 601 Skyway Road in San Carlos. It features a helicopter turkey drop and an indoor turkey hunt. Both are included with museum admission, and members get in free. The hour-long event leaves the rest of Wednesday for groceries and getting ready, and it gives visiting children something to do before the house fills up.
The Week, Laid Out
Taken together, the calendar looks like this for a household in Emerald Hills:
- Friday, Nov. 13: Filoli's Merry & Bright preview night, 6 to 10 p.m., ticketed.
- Saturday, Nov. 14: Holiday Daytime, Holiday Lights and the Filoli Family Farm open to the public.
- Saturday, Nov. 21: Turkey Shoot Scramble at Emerald Hills Golf Course, 938 Wilmington Way, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., rain or shine.
- Sunday, Nov. 22, through Saturday, Nov. 28: no Friends of Edgewood events on the calendar; Edgewood and Huddart are open for self-guided walks.
- Monday, Nov. 23, and Tuesday, Nov. 24: Thanksgiving centerpiece workshops at Filoli.
- Wednesday, Nov. 25: Hiller Aviation Museum's Turkey Toss in San Carlos, 11 a.m. to noon.
- Thursday, Nov. 26: Thanksgiving.
On the Saturday before Thanksgiving, the scramble on Wilmington Way is the event closest to home on that list, and the only one inside the neighborhood. It is $35 for a non-member, cheaper for Elks, and food is included.
For Helen & Brad Miller, keeping up with Emerald Hills means knowing what happens on Wilmington Way and up Cañada Road, not just what sells on the surrounding streets. If you are hosting family this month and want to talk through the neighborhood, whether its seasonal calendar or the longer view of your own property, we are glad to hear from you. Reach Out Today.
