Richmond to Raleigh to Vancouver to Alaska

On the afternoon of Wednesday, June 25, 2025, we left Richmond driving to Raleigh.

Later that afternoon, our friends, the Sherrills, left Greensboro heading to Raleigh.

And on Thursday morning, June 26, further north in Maryland, our friends, the Callows, would be up well before dawn and drive to the Baltimore airport.

The Callows were booked on a flight from Baltimore to Chicago.

After a night of rest in a Raleigh hotel near the airport (RDU), the Pikes and Sherrills would also be early risers to catch a shuttle to the airport. We had an Air Canada direct flight into Vancouver.

When we left Richmond on Wednesday afternoon, the heat and humidity were brutal. As we worked our way down Interstate 85, just north of Henderson, North Carolina, we encountered a fairly strong thunderstorm.

The storm featured some sharp cloud to ground lightning. Plus, it was interesting to watch, the temperature take a downward plunge from the rain.

Not sure how much we slept, but we made it to the hotel lobby to catch the shuttle to RDU. We had a very good shuttle driver.

With our TSA approval, the initial check-in with Air Canada was seamless. Of course, traveling is much more complicated now. My backpack scan failed as my body lotion bottle was considered oversized.

We had a good flight to Vancouver. I was able to watch two movies, plus, we had a bonus—an empty seat between us.
The Callows also had a good flight from Baltimore to Chicago. But getting out of Chicago was a challenge.

They were forced to change planes because of a hydraulic problem on the plane. Of course, this caused a delay.

On our approach coming into Vancouver, I immediately was taken by lots of water.

The airport is located on Sea Island in Richmond, British Columbia.

Strolling through the airport, I was taken by its open design. The architecture features water, nature, and an emphasis on the heritage of the Pacific Northwest.

I wanted to stop and look more carefully, but we needed to keep moving toward customs.

Because of enhanced technology, we cleared our entry into Canada easily.

We took an Uber to the hotel. The Uber driver was a talker. He kept yakking. He shared lots of tourist info, but ultimately he was trying to book us for a long ten hour day of driving to the sights outside of Vancouver

My ears were relieved when we arrived at the Hotel Sylvia.

We checked in, made it to our rooms, and headed to their dining room.

The Sylvia Hotel is a survivor. It is a classic old hotel with lots of charm. Our rooms featured no air conditioning, just open windows with a pleasant breeze

We worked our way to the dining room for lunch. Lunch was a hit with humus, seafood chowder, beet salad, and ahi salad. I loved my chowder, and I had the local Red Truck lager to sip on too.

It wasn’t too long before the Callows arrived, and we made plans for the afternoon.

We left the hotel and walked toward Granville Island. At some point, the braintrust figured out how to take a small ferry shuttle to the island.

Located on thirty five acres, the island is in the Fairview neighborhood of Vancouver. In its previous life, Granville was an industrial manufacturing area.

Today, its main feature is a public market. Fruits and vegetables are attractively displayed on every aisle. An amazing variety of food from local vendors weaves in and out of assorted food stalls and restaurants.

Gradually, we worked our way back to the mainland.

Light rain showers didn’t slow us down, and we had another good meal at Hook for dinner.
We walked back to the hotel, had a night cap while listening to a local singer performing solo with an acoustic guitar.

By now, sleep was starting to pull on us. It had been a long day of travel.

Before snoring off, I thought about the marvels of traveling, and all of the behind the scenes stuff that takes place every day.

No doubt, the plane’s pilots and crew are important, but think about all of those people working behind the scenes to ensure that you and your friends arrive at their destination.

It is all about people. An endless stream of people doing all kinds of work. Traveling, depends upon them, and I need to be more appreciative of the critical role they play.