American Pilgrim: Revisiting Rolf’s lost Travel Channel Thanksgiving special

“The perception that most Americans have about the original Thanksgiving is very much a Hallmark-card stereotype, where the native people and the colonists came together and broke bread and sang ‘Kumbaya.’ In truth, there was a great deal of trepidation on both sides.” – Paula Peters

Full video episode

In this episode of Deviate, Rolf presents an audio remix of American Pilgrim, the Thanksgiving Special he hosted for the Travel Channel in 2008. The episode begins with some contextual history of the Pilgrims’ voyage from England, and a visit to chef Bryant Alden’s kitchen in New Hampshire to discuss what food the Pilgrims ate (5:00); next, Rolf sails out of Plymouth Harbor with John Brewster, and learns about the sea conditions the Pilgrims faced coming over from England (12:00); at Mayflower Brewing Company in Plymouth, brewer Drew Brosseau talks about the importance of beer to the Pilgrims (17:00); elsewhere in Plymouth, Reverend Bill Fillebrown talks about how religious convictions shaped the lives of the Pilgrims (21:00); at Plimoth Plantation, indigenous descendants talk about relations between with Pilgrims and the native people in the area (27:30); in rural Connecticut, Rolf talks with farmer Courtland Kinnie about the Pilgrims’ agricultural practices (30:40); finally, at Fort Hood in Texas, U.S. Army Major Chuck Assadourian talks about the Pilgrims’ approach to defense and security (34:00).

As the holiday season gets underway, a reminder that Rolf’s travel books make great Christmas stocking-stuffers. Vagabonding is a perennial gift favorite for travelers, though please also consider Rolf’s travel-essay collection Marco Polo Didn’t Go There, his travel-history book Souvenir, or his comic-book adaptation of an ancient Egyptian travel tale, The Misadventures of Wenamun.

Fort Hood deleted scene

Notable Links:

• Pilgrims (English settlers in North America)
• Plimoth Plantation (living history museum)
• Mayflower II (replica of 17th century ship)
• Wampanoag (Native American people)
• John Alden (Mayflower Pilgrim)
• Squanto (Patuxet tribal liaison)
• Pottage (thick stew)
• Edward Winslow (Mayflower Pilgrim)
• William Brewster (Mayflower Pilgrim)
• Mayflower Compact (governing document)
• Barque Eagle (U.S. Coast Guard training cutter)
• Mayflower Brewing Company (craft-beer business)
• Cooper (profession)
• William Bradford (Governor of the Plymouth Colony)
• Peregrine White (baby boy born on the Mayflower)
• Puritans (English Protestant sect in the 17th century)
• Pilgrim Progress (church-procession reenactment)
• Patuxet (Wampanoag village affected by plague)
• Wampum (traditional Native shell beads)
• Richard Warren (Mayflower Pilgrim)
• Fort Hood (U.S. Army post)
• Isaac Allerton (Mayflower Pilgrim)
• Myles Standish (military adviser for Plymouth Colony)

Wampanoag deleted scene

This episode of Deviate is brought to you by Tortuga Backpacks, which set the standard for the best, most durable, organized, and comfortable travel backpacks. Tortuga products also include daypacks, duffels, and other travel accessories, which are all made with the traveler in mind and have been featured by Wirecutter, The New York Times, Travel + Leisure, Business Insider, Carryology, and many other industry outlets.

This episode is also brought to you by AirTreks, an industry leader in multi-stop international travel. AirTreks is a distributed travel company with employees working from all corners of the world to help with your flight planning, specializing in complex routes with up to 25 stops. The AirTreks website offers suggested pre-planned travel itineraries to help you get started, but can customize to fit your journey.

The Deviate theme music comes from the title track of Cedar Van Tassel’s 2017 album Lumber.

Note: We don’t host a “comments” section, but we’re happy to hear your questions and insights via email, at deviate@rolfpotts.com.