BUFFALO, N.Y. — ​The roots of sisterhood are not bound to a family tree, according to the members of Black Girls Hike Buffalo.

"We don’t think of it as being friends or just somebody we hike with. We think of each other as family, and we do whatever we can to help one another," said LaTasha Bulluck, founder of the group.

Bulluck said she has always had a love for hiking and her friends would say she should start a Facebook group to share tips and trails with others. Before she knew it, over the course of two and a half years, the page grew to have over 2,000 members.

"For our first hike, we had like seven people come with us, and for our second hike we had 21 people come with us and it just kept growing and growing," said Bulluck.

Her friend and fellow hiker Ta’Via Brooks-Vines first entered Bulluck’s life through the group, and now she is helping to host a baby shower for Bulluck. 

"I like to say you know, we start hikes as friends, and by the end of the hike, we become sisters," said Brooks-Vines. 

The group has also helped Bulluck become closer with her cousin Milena Wright, who has become very involved.

"When the group started," said Bulluck, "she was always asking me if I need anything, letting me know that she’ll be there for me if I need anything."

Hikes took place throughout the pandemic, although socially distanced and masked. Brooks-Vines said it was a great way to keep connected with people during the pandemic.

"It was also a way for us, during the pandemic, to get out and continue to hike, and not to use the pandemic as an excuse to just stay home and ya know, become couch potatoes," Bulluck added.

Black Girls Hike Buffalo, while serving as a safe space for Buffalo’s women of color to bond over a love of hiking, is also an inclusive organization that accepts people of all gender identities and races.