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If you're still hoping for that summer trip, but don't want to dish out the gas money, Dan Erdmann might have your answer. Over the next several weeks, he'll give us a glimpse at some popular, close-to-home attractions. This week Dan's Destinations takes us to one of the area's best-kept secrets... (Dan Erdmann, KX News) Welcome to the first installment of Dan's Destinations. Today, our journey takes us about four miles northeast of Sawyer, North Dakota to the Black Butte Adventures Hiking and Biking Trail, and typically this is a walking and biking trail, but today we are lucky enough to have a guided tour from Maria Effertz-Hanson, so we're going to hop in her pickup and she's going to let us see what the trail has in store. (Maria Effertz-Hanson, Black Butte Adventures) This is the first crossing into the trail itself. We've cut down cattle passes and built fencing around it, because the primary purpose of the area is still cattle. (Dan Erdmann, KX News) The trail consists of a five mile loop, with a separate three mile loop for those that have the energy. Near the trail's entrance is the newest edition to Black Butte- the campground area, which was added last year. As soon as you enter the trail, it doesn't take long to notice the wide variety of plantlife. Effertz-Hanson says some areas along the path contain up to fifty different species of plants in just one square foot area. (Maria Effertz-Hanson, Black Butte Adventures) The best time of year to come is about now until mid-July. There's tons of different flowers that will pop up in the middle of the prairie. (Dan Erdmann, KX News) Since it is a biking trail, it does have its share of obstacles, but luckily for people like me, they're not too difficult to overcome. (Maria Effertz-Hanson, Black Butte Adventures) This is a natural spring that runs year round, and in order for us to cross it, we did an environmentally friendly and just put rocks down, so people can easily walk across it or bike across it. (Dan Erdmann, KX News) But one obstacle that does pose a bit of a challenge is Black Butte itself. It was formed by a glacial hole and has an interesting history behind it. If you have the endurance to make it to the top, the view is well-worth the effort. (Maria Effertz-Hanson, Black Butte Adventures) This is the trail on top of the Black Butte. This is part of the first five mile loop and you can see you can wander around the top here. Once you get on the top, you get a chance to have an incredible view of the valley. And on a good day, you can see the water towers of Minot, so you can really see an incredible distance. (Dan Erdmann, KX News) So whether you're an experienced mountain biker, or just out for a stroll, the trail has something for everyone to enjoy. (Bryce Werner, Mountain Biker) There's been a lot of birds, a lot of flowers, it's obviously springtime, so it's pretty nice out here. I like it. (Maria Effertz-Hanson, Black Butte Adventures) It gives us a chance to do a little education. Kind of get people outside and show people the value of North Dakota. (Dan Erdmann, KX News) And along with that education, you're sure to get one heck of a workout. Along the Black Butte Adventures Trail, Dan Erdmann, KX News. And here's a list of the details of Dan's journey. A 36 mile round trip, using four dollar gas at 20 miles per gallon, and a free will donation to Black Butte for, let's say, seven dollars per person. Total cost of the trip from Minot is $21.20.