PIERRE, S.D. -- It was one of those days that makes South Dakota famous.

The bright, prairie sun washed across the landscape, lighting up the yellow, brown and tan colors of fall.

The dark blue waters of massive Lake Oahe flashed in the background as a small army of hunter orange-draped individuals, black shotgun barrels held high and ready, filed into the field.

Yet, all of this was no match for the beauty of the first brilliantly-hued rooster pheasant which took to the air.

The guns spoke but the bird plowed on through a hail of pellets to set his wings and cruise a full quarter mile before sitting down into the tall grass.

Others would not be so lucky.

After three hours of hard hunting, members of team 26 stopped hunting to count their birds. We were nine short.

"We'll get them on the next drive," said Larry Steffen, landowner.

And we did.

This was a scenario being played out all across the major pheasant range in South Dakota.

It was the 2008 Governor Mike Rounds Invitational Pheasant Hunt.

Close to 50 teams of hunters were in the field hunting pheasant rich lands of 48 landowners.

The hunt is a tradition that harkens back to the time of Gov. Joe Foss in the 1950s.

This was, I believe, my 25 consecutive hunt.

The goal is to showcase the state in the interest of economic development.

Entrepreneurs from throughout the country are invited and they will see firsthand the advantages of locating or expanding their businesses into the state. And not the least of those advantages is the friendly business climate guarded by state government.

The event begins on Friday with an afternoon trap shoot and short programs at the Pierre Izaak Walton Clubhouse.

That evening a First Lady's Prairie Art Showcase gives artists an opportunity to show and market their work. A social accompanies the art show just before a banquet where attendees meet their team members and plan the next day's hunt with their team leaders and landowners.

After breakfast the next morning, the teams depart for the fields and hunt until limits are filled or hunters run out of stamina.

Then there is another social and another banquet to close the event for another year.

The pheasants are cleaned, flash frozen and packed in coolers for hunters to pick up the next morning.

It's an impressive event, put together through volunteer work and the generosity of a couple hundred sponsors.

Yet, none of this would be possible without the cooperation of landowners such as Steffen Brothers Outdoor Expeditions, a hunting and fishing preserve operated by brothers Larry, Dave and Ernie Steffens, Team 26's hosts for the hunt.

The Governor's Hunt is always a hunt to remember.

Steffen Brothers

Where is it: 20 miles north of Pierre, S.D.

Owners: Larry, Ernie and Dave Steffens

Hunting: Pheasants, grouse, waterfowl, coyotes, prairie dogs on 15,000 acres.

Fishing: Walleyes, smallmouth bass, catfish northern pike or salmon on Lake Oahe.

Lodge: Completed in 2005, four rooms sleeps 8 to 10, satellite TV, pool table, kitchen, 20-foot bar.

Phone: (866) 791-6222