- 2 weeks ago
For many Latinas and women of color, our connection to nature runs deeper than simply spending time outdoors. It’s ancestral. But generations of colonialism, racism and exclusion have made spaces our ancestors once lived on, cultivated and gathered in feel like places where we don’t always belong.
In this episode of Sin Vergüenza by Somos, host Raquel Reichard sits down with Evelynn Escobar, founder and executive director of Hike Clerb, to talk about what it means to reclaim that connection.
Since 2017, Escobar has built community for queer, trans and women of color to take up space outdoors, reconnect with the land and find healing together. She and Raquel unpack the barriers that have historically made parks, trails and other outdoor spaces feel inaccessible, the power of experiencing nature in community, and why reconnecting with the outdoors doesn’t have to mean becoming a “hiker.”
In this episode of Sin Vergüenza by Somos, host Raquel Reichard sits down with Evelynn Escobar, founder and executive director of Hike Clerb, to talk about what it means to reclaim that connection.
Since 2017, Escobar has built community for queer, trans and women of color to take up space outdoors, reconnect with the land and find healing together. She and Raquel unpack the barriers that have historically made parks, trails and other outdoor spaces feel inaccessible, the power of experiencing nature in community, and why reconnecting with the outdoors doesn’t have to mean becoming a “hiker.”
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00I know when I first started hitting trails, girl, I got my khakis, I got my hiking boots.
00:06Those were the dark times, okay?
00:08I had on the flannel, the boring plaid, I had the little fleece vest.
00:13Which could be a vibe.
00:14It wasn't a vibe the way that I was wearing back then.
00:16It was just like, oh, I'm going to these spaces, so I put on the uniform.
00:19And it's very drab, very gray, and we are not drab gray people.
00:22Period.
00:23So that was also part of it, where I was like, no, if I'm going to be doing this,
00:27and this is such a big part of who I am, I'm coming out in my fullness.
00:43Growing up Latina means growing up being called una sinvergüenza.
00:48Welcome to Sinvergüenza, a new bi-weekly show from Refinery29 Somos.
00:52I'm your host, Raquel Reichard, Deputy Director at Somos and author of Self-Care for Latinas.
00:59Every episode, we sit down with a Latina whose story gives us a new way to think about the things
01:03we're all trying to figure out.
01:05Experts who can help us shamelessly live our best, most authentic life during seriously rough times.
01:12This is where Latinas come to figure life out without judgment or the pressure to have it all together.
01:17Because, despite what Abuelita said, to be a sinvergüenza is to be a woman living fully, taking up space, speaking
01:26truth, and reclaiming what we've been told to hide, without shame.
01:30And isn't that a life worth choosing?
01:32Around here, being a sinvergüenza is a good thing.
01:36So ven, mami.
01:37Your favorite show is on.
01:39In today's episode, we're talking about the great outdoors, specifically, Latinas' deep-rooted relationship with the land, how that connection
01:48was disrupted, and the nourishment and life we can find when we return to nature, especially when we return together.
01:55Today, I'm sitting down with Evelyn Escoban, the Black and Guatemalan founder and executive director of HikeClub, a decolonial outdoor
02:05collective and nonprofit designed to help racially and ethnically marginalized women and queer folks to experience collective healing in nature.
02:13Founded in 2017, HikeClub creates ways for communities of color to reconnect with the outdoors, whether through monthly hikes and
02:21experiences, education and skill building, or its work to make public spaces safer, more welcoming, and more accessible.
02:28Hi, Evelyn.
02:29Hello.
02:30How are you?
02:31I'm doing amazing.
02:32Thank you so much for having me here.
02:33I'm so happy you're here.
02:35I'm so grateful to be speaking with you.
02:37We've been in conversation for a few years, but this is the first time we actually meet.
02:43I know, which is insane.
02:44It's been so long.
02:46So wild.
02:47Well, it's happening.
02:48Yes.
02:50Welcome to the show.
02:51Thank you so much for having me.
02:52So you started HikeClub because you felt that being outdoors, right, this space that felt so healing and natural for
03:00you to be in, you weren't really seeing folks who look like you in these spaces.
03:05Can you talk to me about that, like what that experience was like for you as a young person, you
03:10know, I know, spending time on the trails with your aunt, you know, what about that experience and not seeing
03:17folks who look like you made you feel like these spaces weren't necessarily for you?
03:21And how did that conflict with like everything that you were learning from your aunt and your history?
03:27Absolutely.
03:28Well, you know, the irony is that like my welcome into the outdoors is another brown Latina like me.
03:36And I think, you know, that at the end of the day, like that's really all that anyone needs is
03:42just an invitation and a welcome to get out there.
03:45So I would come to Los Angeles and visit her and we would just go do, you know, simple hikes.
03:51I like spent a summer here in college and we that was our thing.
03:54Like we would always go on all the major hikes.
03:56So by the time I moved here, I had my trails down.
03:59So I started to go out and venture and I did like a road trip.
04:03And I remember where I was working at the time, I would hear people talk about like Zion.
04:07They would go to Zion all the time.
04:08So I'm like, oh, touristy destination sounds fabulous.
04:11I'm going to go.
04:12So I go to Zion, I go to the Grand Canyon and I realize how homogenous and white the space
04:18still is.
04:19And I'm thinking like this is a national park, like this is going to be a cultural, you know, moment.
04:26And it was not that.
04:27And in fact, I just remember being met with like curiosity, stairs of curiosity in Zion on the easiest trail.
04:34And I'm like, look, I'm here for the same reason y'all are here.
04:37And also my ancestors are literally native to this land just a few miles down south.
04:44Like, why are y'all looking at me crazy?
04:46And you knew that?
04:46You knew that then?
04:47Oh, yes, absolutely.
04:48So my background, I'm black and quiche from Guatemala.
04:53So, yeah, I'm like, y'all are y'all, y'all got the wrong one.
04:57So y'all got the wrong one.
04:59Truly, because then I channeled that anger and I transmuted it to create this group.
05:06And so I was having all of these experiences of healing in nature, like unconsciously.
05:13You know, I was processing these things.
05:15I was coming away, feeling so clear and resetting.
05:17All of these things that I had not learned previously.
05:20And I was naturally doing it.
05:23So I knew how important it was to, for my own healing journey, I knew how important it
05:28was because I had other black and brown women and just gender extensive people who were interested
05:33in these spaces like myself that I was in community with.
05:36And so I wanted to create a space for liberation and reclamation to connect ourselves, not only
05:45to each other, but to the land, most importantly, to heal the past and the future.
05:50Yeah, I love that.
05:51And I feel like that sense of, you know, you said you didn't even realize it as it was
05:58happening, but it feels like it's a sort of like remembering.
06:01It's like your spirit knew, your body knew.
06:04Exactly.
06:04It like enters in this flow state, which I know like we all talk about like flow state
06:09now, but no, it's like an actual connection, you know.
06:13And I was spending a lot of time in the Southwest.
06:15So you see these beautiful red rocks and like red like messes and all of these things.
06:21And you're tapping into literally the power of like these minerals and, you know, literally
06:26the power of the land.
06:27And it's just something that is a beautiful byproduct of connecting with what we are, which
06:33is nature.
06:34You're out on these hikes, right?
06:36I know your first hike was really, it was a group of 10 people and now it can be as
06:42big as hundreds of people.
06:44First of all, wow.
06:47I know we've, we've come far.
06:48We have come a long way.
06:50I mean, I have like, how do you manage a hundred people?
06:53That's incredible.
06:54It is actually a little insane.
06:56So we like tried to keep it intimate because we really do want people to get to know each
07:00other and like have, you know, have that interpersonal moment.
07:03Yeah.
07:04Well, talking about that, right?
07:05So it's like in those moments, what does it mean to sort of reclaim those spaces to say
07:11that like, despite laws that kept us from like being in these spaces, right?
07:17Despite public, you know, like rangers who made us feel intimidated, right?
07:24In these spaces, you're saying you belong here, like we belong here.
07:29What is it like for you to like see that in someone, right?
07:33To like have, to see them like actually soaking that message in and feeling like they belong
07:42in these spaces and feeling at home, right?
07:45In these spaces.
07:46Yes.
07:47Well, the space was created by design to be a safe space.
07:53Yeah.
07:53And like, let's be real here.
07:55Our existence as Latinas, as people of the global majority has never been convenient for
08:03people who want to colonize our lands.
08:05So we have not been welcomed in any space.
08:08And the land was like the first battleground, of course.
08:11The borders, just wanting to extract, you know, resources.
08:17And we have been forced to, to move out of these places that we are literally born from.
08:24Yep.
08:24So even just creating a space to say, you can come as you are with, you know, your nail
08:31art, with your bright outfits.
08:34I love that.
08:35With, you know, or your Adam Sandler look.
08:37Like whatever you want to wear, you can come as you are and like you are accepted.
08:43And like, this is a space for true community.
08:45We are looking out for each other.
08:47We're not leaving anyone behind.
08:48Like, this is for everyone.
08:50You know what I mean?
08:51And so setting that tone goes a long way.
08:54You know, already we get so many people who come out by themselves because they're like,
08:58this is safe.
08:58I can do this.
08:59And, you know, that's a little scary.
09:01I think we talk a lot about just like millennials and Gen Z and blah, blah, blah, blah, how everyone
09:06has all of these like reservations to do things or to try things, being seen trying.
09:12But this is a space where people really do allow themselves to be seen trying because they
09:16know that they're going to be met with like nurturing and care.
09:21And for me, as a Cancer rising, also Virgo, Sun and Moon.
09:25I'm a Cancer.
09:26Oh my God.
09:27Okay.
09:27So you get it.
09:28That was always, that was very important to me because like I said, for me, it started
09:32with a warm invitation, a familial invitation.
09:35And so I wanted to be able to provide that for others.
09:38Yeah.
09:39And I love that because, I mean, you said you can have your nails, you know, you can have
09:45your bright colors because I know when I first started hitting trails, girl, I got
09:49my khakis, I got my hiking boots.
09:52Those were the dark times.
09:54Okay.
09:54Because the first, that trip to Zion in the Grand Canyon, I had on the flannel, the boring
10:01plaid.
10:02I had the little fleece vest.
10:04Which could be a vibe.
10:05It can be a vibe.
10:06You got, you got your, you know, your bamboo earrings on still.
10:10Yeah.
10:10But like in an ironic way, you know, it can be a vibe, but it wasn't a vibe the way
10:14that
10:14I was wearing back then.
10:15For sure.
10:15I was just like, oh, I'm going to these spaces.
10:17So like I put on the uniform and it's like very drab, very gray.
10:21And we are not drab, gray people.
10:22Period.
10:23So that was also part of it where I was like, no, if I'm going to be doing this and
10:27like,
10:27this is such a big part of who I am, like I'm coming out in my fullness and that's part
10:32of taking up space.
10:33It's like taking up space exactly as you are, not watering it down for anyone.
10:37And yeah, like the outdoors don't care.
10:41The bears don't care what you wear.
10:42You know, I'm like, they say, are you more afraid of the bears or the people?
10:47It's like, it's the people you got to watch out for.
10:49So people are scary.
10:51The people on those trails are scary.
10:55As Latinas, of course, our relationship with the land is ancestral, right?
11:01Like our matriarchs have, you know, always use the land as a source for food, for medicine,
11:06for community, for care, for spirituality.
11:10And yet colonialism, displacement, racism, xenophobia, all the things that we've already
11:15been talking about have, you know, disrupted that, disrupted that connection.
11:21What do you think happens when we stop thinking about getting, stop thinking about it as getting
11:26into nature or, you know, thinking about it as like a new lifestyle, a new health kick
11:32versus, you know, starting to think about it as a returning or a remembering?
11:37Absolutely.
11:38Well, one of the biggest things that we talk about before we even engage in the act of hiking
11:45is that like, this is a space for reclamation.
11:50And that, to me, I think is the most important part of it, because we're coming out with the
11:54intention to not only show and express gratitude to the land and the original stewards and the
12:01ancestors who paved the way for us to even be there and recreate the way that we do today,
12:10but to also set that tone amongst ourselves.
12:15Like, we are not coming to take.
12:17We are coming to be a part of an active experience in which, you know, even just our breath is
12:24like
12:24giving back to the trees and being aware of that.
12:28Because I think a lot of what we talk about in nature now is like this passive experience of like
12:34going out, taking a picture of these beautiful places and it kind of stopping there.
12:39But it's like, no, you can engage in this like reciprocal symbiotic relationship that we
12:44are always a part of, whether we are conscious to it or unconscious to it.
12:49And like my job and our job is to make us conscious to it.
12:54This is so good.
12:56Like, I'm like, baby girl, when are you dropping the books?
12:59Like, are we working on it?
13:01It's about to God's ears.
13:03That is for sure on the way.
13:05Yes.
13:06Yes.
13:06Hike Club, of course, isn't just about hiking.
13:09Like, what's so beautiful about it is like, it's a community, right?
13:13And so what happens, right, when you're not the only black or brown person on the trail,
13:19but you're surrounded by community and together you're laughing, you're resting, you're learning,
13:26you're taking up space, as you said.
13:28Um, what kind of like healing just inherently comes from that?
13:33Well, you know, we talk a lot about like when you go to a concert and everyone is singing
13:37and you have that moment, you're like, oh, this feels so good.
13:40Life is worth living.
13:41And it's this thing called like collective effervescence.
13:45And you get that when you're out and everyone is like super charging this intention and you
13:53have this collective power and it feels like the ancestors are like there with you.
13:58You know what I mean?
13:58Like we're all meant to be in that space and engage in the ways that we're meant to engage
14:03in that moment.
14:04And it becomes this thing where you really realize like you're a part of this bigger movement
14:11in collective consciousness that is truly calling people back to living with the land.
14:17And so we are just a vessel to allow that to happen because that, that is where we are
14:23moving to.
14:24You know what I mean?
14:24Like clearly the way that we are living as a society is not compatible with the earth,
14:31with ourselves as human beings, as people who are a part of nature.
14:35And so, you know, going out in this way, a big piece of that work really is kind of like
14:47it's, it's us tapping in, tapping into the stream of consciousness of where we're moving
14:53to, obviously not where we've been.
14:57I'm also thinking because it's not only a connection or reconnection with nature, but
15:02it's a connection with each other.
15:06Right.
15:06And at a time where, I mean, there is a loneliness epidemic that's non-gendered, right?
15:14We're all feeling it.
15:15Yes.
15:15Social media is supposed to be connecting us, but yet we all feel lonelier than ever.
15:20And, you know, I think that there's also, there's, there's something to that as well.
15:25And there's something so beautiful that like this group is, is not just connecting us, reconnecting
15:31us to the land and, and just the way that you do it also so intentionally and like speaking
15:38to, to history and ancestry, but also through that, that process of learning together.
15:44It's like, I'm sure you've seen so many beautiful friendships, relationships, you know, blossom.
15:51Yes, absolutely.
15:52I mean, I've heard of, yeah, people finding their best friends, attending each other's
15:56weddings, like all of these beautiful things.
15:58And also just like the shared moments that you get to be a part of.
16:03Like we just went to Yosemite and did a stewardship weekend that we do annually.
16:10And we had a moment where everyone was around the campfire, learning the Solange Losing You
16:15dance.
16:15Yeah.
16:16Yeah.
16:17So it's like those things where you're like, wow, like we get to do this.
16:21We get to just like exist however we want in this moment.
16:25And yeah.
16:26Yeah.
16:27I just went on an adult like camp trip, adult as in we're adult, not, nothing, nothing
16:33wild.
16:34Thank you for the designation.
16:37But I never like camped when I was a kid, right?
16:40Like that was just my, my parents were like, absolutely.
16:43Exactly.
16:43Absolutely not.
16:44You're not even allowed to sleep over at anybody's house.
16:46You think you're going to go to a camp in another town with all these people?
16:50Yeah.
16:50No.
16:50So I did that for the first time, um, like a month ago, maybe a month or two ago.
16:56And I had the best time just being outside, like hiking with folks, folks I didn't know
17:04was meeting for the first time, making my little vegan s'mores.
17:09It just felt so nourishing, not just for my body, but, but really for my spirit.
17:15It felt, it was, it was incredible.
17:16I went forest bathing, like it was, but I'm doing it also with other people.
17:21So it was just, and I think that's the thing with it all is like, we keep each other safe.
17:27We care for each other.
17:29Um, especially when we talk about like just collective healing, community healing, like
17:34no one's going to look out for you, like your people.
17:37And so that's, you know, with High Clare, but it's not only are we gathering, uh, people
17:43of the global majority of black and brown people, but the people behind the scenes are
17:47also black and brown people and people of the global majority.
17:48Like we're making these things for us, by us because we understand what we need first
17:54and foremost.
17:55Yeah.
17:56For someone who's listening, um, and who feels disconnect, disconnecting from nature, but
18:01also is like, I'm not a hiker.
18:04I don't have the gear.
18:05I don't have the khakis and the flannels.
18:12I don't have the time.
18:14And honestly, like maybe even folks who like, just don't even know where to start.
18:17Maybe they live in a city, right?
18:18What does reconnecting with the outdoors actually look like in your everyday life?
18:23Well, I always tell people to do what they can with what they have.
18:29So if all you have is maybe like.
18:32Mariah Carey.
18:33I'm doing the best with what I got.
18:34No, literally that energy.
18:37Like if all you have is like maybe a little sliver of grass in the front lawn, take off
18:41your shoes and go like touch your feet in the grass and ground and connect to like the,
18:46you know, electric magnetic force of the earth.
18:51If you have hikes nearby, grab a friend, grab a water bottle and some athletic shoes.
18:57Cause Lord knows I was hiking for years and just like some old running shoes.
19:02You know what I mean?
19:03And just like go hit the trails.
19:04That's the beautiful thing is that you really do not need anything to begin.
19:07You just, you just need to move.
19:09You just need to move.
19:10And so whether that's just like a walk around the neighborhood, whatever it is.
19:13But I think, you know, especially as black and brown people, like safety is a huge piece
19:18of it because I mean, here we are in 2026 and we are seeing stories about black people
19:24in this country getting lynched almost weekly at this point.
19:28And so that's another thing that I stress is like the buddy system is very important
19:32for us.
19:34And, you know, I, I would say I live a pretty fearless life and like, I'm never going to
19:39not do something out of fear, but also taking that precaution.
19:43If you don't have someone to go with you, give someone your location, you know, just practice
19:47those things to make sure all of your bases are covered before going out there because
19:51it is still dangerous for us.
19:52And this is why things like this exist.
19:55Yeah.
19:55Yeah.
19:56I, I'm in Orlando, I'm in Florida.
19:59And so people are always like, oh, there's like, there are no like great trails, right?
20:03Cause it's very flat terrain.
20:04I'm like, we have the wetlands, right?
20:06And I love the wetlands.
20:08You'll catch me at the wetlands, you know, every couple months, but Florida is still the
20:14South.
20:15Like Orlando, people don't realize that Florida is Florida.
20:19You know, okay.
20:19And Orlando is quite progressive, but the moment you just, you, you know, you just go
20:24a couple miles, you know, out of Orlando, it's a very different experience.
20:29And so as much as I love the wetlands, I'm not pulling up by myself.
20:34It's not something that's happening.
20:35And honestly, that's the experience too, at these national parks, you go to Yellowstone,
20:40Yosemite, you know, you still have to really like watch your back, look at where you're going
20:44because sadly, just the, the political time that we're living in, I mean, we've never
20:50lived in a time where, like I said, our existences were convenient or safe or accepted.
20:55And I think we're in like a very polarizing time.
20:59And so it's just, yeah, taking the safety precautions and knowing what you're working
21:03with, but also like holding your head high and going to those places because we are a
21:08part of nature too, all like our, as human beings on this earth, our first home is earth,
21:15is the land.
21:16So we all inherently belong in these spaces.
21:19We all have a place here.
21:21And so just remembering that when you go out, that this is ours too, you know.
21:28That was so beautiful.
21:30So many gems.
21:31Thank you so much for the reminders.
21:33Of course.
21:34We have a community of primas who also need some reminding.
21:39And so with that, it's time to enter the Prima group chat.
21:44Ooh, here we go.
21:46This is where our audience brings the questions, dilemmas, and situations they're navigating
21:50straight to the group chat for a little advice from our expert, you.
21:55Let's do it.
21:56Today, we've got one Prima who needs some advice from someone who knows what it means
22:00to find your way back to yourself through nature and community.
22:03Let's see who's texting.
22:06All right.
22:07We have Angie from New York.
22:10Hola.
22:11I'm Angie Castaneda, and I'm from Nueva York.
22:14She didn't say Nueva York.
22:16She said Nueva York, but I'm so Puerto Rican.
22:19You can feel a little flare on it.
22:21I was born and raised in New York, but my family's roots are indigenous to Ecuador.
22:25For a while now, I've been feeling called to spend more time in nature, but it's hard living
22:30in a city.
22:30There's only so much I can do.
22:32How do you suggest I find time to return to my ancestral practices rooted in nature, a
22:37practice that I feel was taken from me and my family?
22:40You know, the thing, the beautiful thing about it all is that the land, the practices, all
22:49of that live inside of you.
22:50And so as soon as you choose to express that, it comes out.
22:53Even if it's just having some house plants that you take care of.
22:57Yeah.
22:57You know what I mean?
22:57And being in New York, honestly, you are so close to a lot of great nature points.
23:03I mean, you can take a little ferry, you can go to Governor's Island, you can obviously
23:07go upstate and there's great things.
23:08But you can even go to Queens, go to Forest Park, where actually I just hosted a hike
23:12like a few months ago.
23:14And like be in the woods.
23:15Yeah.
23:16You're going to hear some cars, but like you're in the woods, you know what I mean?
23:19So I think, again, it's about utilizing what you have around you.
23:23And if, you know, maybe getting up there isn't like getting out to Queens or getting upstate
23:27isn't something that you can do often, like at least get some plants, like start connecting
23:32and tending to nature in a way that feels accessible to you.
23:36And you will see like truly magical things start to happen when you really tap in to not
23:42only to connecting with nature, but to your ancestral practices.
23:46That's so beautiful.
23:49This is amazing.
23:51No, thank you.
23:52You are amazing.
23:53Again, I am so hyped for this book.
23:55I'm manifesting it.
23:57Like it's not, it feels like an upgrade.
23:59I don't know actually how it hasn't happened yet.
24:01Like honestly, same.
24:02Genuinely, like I don't know.
24:04There's been so much going on.
24:07That's real.
24:08Yeah.
24:08Like we said, 2020, what happened?
24:11Exactly.
24:12A wormhole.
24:13So Evelyn, before we let you go, we've talked about how our relationship with nature is
24:18ancestral and yet creating communal spaces for us in the outdoors still requires us to
24:23unlearn and undo so much of the damage that colonialism has done to that relationship.
24:29As you think about the life you've built and the relationship you're continuing to cultivate
24:33with yourself, your community, and the natural world, what does living sin vergüenza mean to you?
24:39It means taking up space and being myself unapologetically, not letting shame, expectations, opinions stop me from doing what I
24:52feel compelled to do.
24:53And I think that we can all, you know, that's how we all should be striving to live is our
24:58most authentic self.
24:59Yeah.
25:00Before conditioning.
25:01Every single day.
25:03Exactly.
25:03Period.
25:04It's easier some days than others, harder some days than others.
25:07But you keep trying and you just live as true to yourself as you can.
25:11Yeah.
25:12I love you keep trying because like you said, easier some days, you know, you know, more like
25:18some days than versus others, but also like spaces that you're in, like, but we keep trying.
25:24Exactly.
25:24It's a muscle you flex and the more you flex it, girl, then you're entering everything exactly
25:29as you are.
25:31So yeah, just keep trying.
25:33Yeah.
25:33I love that.
25:34Thank you so much, Evelyn.
25:35This was such a beautiful conversation.
25:37Thank you so much.
25:37I appreciate you and the work that you're doing.
25:39Like, yes, you gotta get me on a hike.
25:40No, like, I would love that.
25:42Like, I leave at like 345.
25:45My flight's at least at 345.
25:46I got a morning.
25:47Oh my gosh.
25:48Look, I mean, I'm crazy enough to do it, but we will get you out there.
25:52Yes.
25:53I can't wait.
25:55Of course.
25:57And that's it for this episode of Seemed Wentza.
25:59If you love this conversation, make sure to subscribe so you don't miss the next one.
26:04And drop a comment below and tell us who you think our next guest should be.
26:07Until next time, keep taking up space, keep doing life on your own terms, and stay living
26:13sin vergüenza.