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Yesterday morning – while I was still half asleep and trying to get myself in gear for the day – I saw this story about technology and the great outdoors on the TODAY show. The gist of the story was that the more time folks spend using mobile technology, the less aware of their personal safety they often become.

Take, for example, the recent incident in Yellowstone National Park where a couple of curious tourists got too close to a bison bull with the video camera. The bull felt they were in his territory and did what bison do – charged to defend himself and ended up injuring the female tourist. The intruding video camera continued to roll, recording the whole ordeal. That was the footage that made the rounds on the national news stations a few weeks back.

Thankfully, the woman recovered just fine, but it could have ended much worse. It was a prime example of getting caught up in a situation and letting common sense go right out the window.

I’ll be the first to admit – I’m just as guilty as anybody – I’m a fan and frequent user of all sorts of geeky techno-related things while out and about here in the Black Hills. You know – sending picture messages from the cell phone, concentrating on the camera in order to get that perfect shot, firing off a quick Twitter update about the trail-du-jour that I’m headed for – that kind of thing.

That’s why this news story on the TODAY show struck such a chord with me. I find myself doing these things all too often and probably not paying nearly as much attention to my surroundings as I should. I could easily loose my footing on a steep trail or worse. So, there’s definitely the safety issue.

But, the more I thought about it – the more I realized that I’m probably missing out on some of the simple beauties of the region as well. Sometimes I get so caught up in trying to share with my friends the cool things that I’m up to in the hills, that I don’t even really take the time to stop and take it all in for myself. To just sit and enjoy and appreciate this amazing place that I call home.

So, I guess I’m saying that I think technology is all well and good, but we need to keep our heads about us. We need to use some common sense and be aware of our surroundings when out enjoying the Black Hills, Badlands or anywhere else.

Take lots of pictures, make some great memories, share them with your friends and enjoy this area to the fullest. Just be sure to do it all safely, smartly and enjoyably.