When Hurricane Ike invaded the southeast coast of Texas in the predawn hours of Saturday, Sept. 18, 2008, the massive storm brought destruction, devastation, death and disruption. With winds topping out at 110 miles per hour and rainfall measuring as much as 10 inches, it was obvious the Saturday opening of the popular Texas 16-day teal season would be put on hold.

A world of waterfowling awaits at Blue Wing Ranch.

My wife, Jan, and I had planned a trip to Houston to visit our son, Todd, and his wife, Amy, and their two sons, Samuel, 14, and Will, 12. Todd had started our grandsons on waterfowl hunting in their single-digit years, and they are heirs to the family waterfowl tradition instituted by their great-grandfather. Of course, our weeklong visit was based around the opening week of the Texas teal season. Hurricane Ike wasn't a consideration when we planned our adventure after the season was announced in August.

With advanced warning, Houston and the nearly four million residents of Harris County had two choices: They could ride out the storm or join the massive traffic jam heading north in evacuation. Todd made the decision for his family to hunker down at their West University home and accept the wrath of Ike.

We were in constant cell phone communication with our loved ones before, during and after the storm. By Sunday morning, God had answered our prayers. They were safe, and no structural property damage was incurred -- only much debris, street flooding, downed tree limbs and loss of power. Sunday afternoon, Todd loaded family, perishable food, two dogs and Jessie the cat and headed 45 miles southwest to his hunting ranch near Eagle Lake.

in the heart of what is known as the Snow Goose Capitol of America, Blue Wing Ranch offers the Reid family safe haven before and after the hunt.

Flurry After the Storm
Todd's Blue Wing Ranch, a Ducks Unlimited wetlands restoration co-op project of almost 300 acres, lies in the heart of the Texas waterfowl region known as the "Snow Goose Capitol of America." Hunters throughout the country come to the Eagle Lake area in late autumn and winter to pursue the millions of snows and specklebellies that migrate to the region. You can imagine by the name chosen for the ranch that another species of waterfowl frequents the same Texas flatland.

Blue-winged teal, commonly referred to as bluewings, are one of the smallest of the waterfowl species. They are the first ducks to migrate, arriving in southeast Texas in late August each year on an almost predictable date, much like the swallows to Capistrano and the buzzards to Hinckley, Ohio. Teal find the thousands of acres of flooded Texas rice fields and spacious prairies as a welcome stopover before completing their 5,000- to 7,000-mile migration into Mexico and Central America.

Jan and I had all but crossed off our Texas trip after Ike's fury shut down airports, canceling all flights until further notice, closing many roads and leaving most without power. But a Monday morning phone call from Todd gave us hope. He indicated the airports would open on Tuesday, power was slowly being restored and travel was being allowed if you could obtain fuel. He, his sons and two friends had enjoyed a 20-bird limit of teal early that morning. "Need you and mom down here if you can book a flight," he said.