Alaska Bound Poem by Stanley Cooper

On Sunday we were northwest bound
Going even farther then the Puget Sound
First stop was beauteous V B C*
We looked forward to it, both Jeannie and me

It’s a cultural treat visiting museums in Vancouver
Though far different from Paris’s Louvre
In old Gastown stands the first built Steam Clock
Just a stones throw away from where our ship docked

A stroll down Robson Street is surely a must
For those, like Jeanne, with that shoppers lust
Where else can one buy a totem in one shop
And sophisticated computers at the very next stop

Then we boarded the Veendam, our cruiser
I hung on to Jeanne...did not want to lose her
Got assigned to our stateroom number one thirty five
The hint of the salt water air had us feeling alive

Now, wouldn’t Juneau- the first port we’d stop at
Was Alaska‘s Juneau- Could Juneau how to top that
At the Capital city with snow peaks galore
We opted for the Mendenhall Glacier tour

Our first glacier view had us so admiring
This vast sheet of ice that was so awe inspiring
Next city was Skagway, population eight hundred...not counting bears
With most of those eight hundred in shops, hawking their wares

But this commercial tourist stop did not at all diminish
Skagway’s natural beauty for those who stayed for the finish
We took a ride on the historic White Pass and Yukon Railroad
From which we viewed giant forests of trees years ago sowed

Growing in their mountainous homes, where they seem to aspire
To reach up to the sky where nothing grows higher
The train took us way up, around, and then down
Causing a few frightened frowns
But what’s a hairy scare or two, in lieu
Of the grandeur we viewed
On the rim of old Skagway town

We next arrived at Glacier Bay and were truly in awe
By Huge claps of thunder the likes of which we never foresaw
Which filled our ears and our hearts with wonder
Could those majestic sounds really just be thunder?

And after those roars came the falling of ice
No words I can find would really suffice
Chunks of ice, the size of skyscrapers falling
Fell into the sea as if following some calling

No, those huge roaring sounds were really not thunder
They were the results of the glacier being ripped asunder
As majestic a sight one could ever dream up
Is this calving of ice..nature’s getting it’s steam up

We’re a couple who for words do not lack
But the glaciers just left us all out of whack
There we were with mouths wide open
With too much wonder for words to be spoken

The ship did a turn and we were back on our way
To a town of note we’d see the next day
Cruising the inside passage back down south
Till we came to the city at this inlet’s mouth

Ketchikan...a most unlikely name
For a city with such beauty to claim
It’s a heaven for sightseers and fisherman too
And a tourist’s delight with wonders to view

It’s the rainiest of places so raincoats are needed
That’s a suggestion we had and sure wish we heeded
But it’s wetness didn’t seem to bother it’s eagles
Our national bird that’s so beautifully regal

White heads and tails and their super large wingspan
That fit in so well with the wide skies of Ketchikan
As sentries that guard this city’s great harbor
In their stately way, they do it with ardor

Away from the cities, through nature we sailed
By contrast we saw how humans have failed
In viewing the great outdoors, so wild, yet serene
We found a desire, to be one with this scene

In Alaska where it’s quiet and secluded
We oft times felt our presence intruded