Talon Wilson didn't set out to build a movement. He went for a hike at Harriman State Park, looked around, and noticed something that he couldn't unfind.
It was a Saturday in early 2023. Talon had been hiking on his own for about a year — solo miles, mostly in the Hudson Valley.
"
"It wasn't hostile. It wasn't a moment. It was just the architecture — built without us in the blueprint. And once you see that, you can't stop seeing it."
He spent the next two months looking for a community that already existed. He found nothing that took the brotherhood seriously.
"
"I wasn't looking to start something. I was looking for something that already existed. When I couldn't find it, I understood that meant I had to build it."
BLK MEN HIKE launched in 2024 with a single chapter in New York and thirteen brothers on the first group hike.
// Hiker Profile // BLK MEN HIKE
Founding TrailSuffern-Bear Mountain Trail, Harriman State Park, NY
Founded2024 // New York City // 13 brothers on the first hike
Chapters at Launch1 (NYC) → 5 within 6 months (ATL, HOU, LA, CHI)
What He BuiltNot a hiking club. A fraternal structure that uses the trail as its proving ground.