A unique chance to take a scenic bicycle ride through Vicksburg, across the Mississippi River and through the Vicksburg National Military Park is fast approaching.

The eighth annual Bricks and Spokes bicycle ride across the Old Mississippi River Bridge will take place Sept. 30.

Vicksburg Main Street is partnering with Bike Your Park this year to design the routes for the ride and some will include the chance to ride through the Vicksburg National Military Park after crossing back over the Old Mississippi River Bridge from Louisiana.

“Riding across the Old Mississippi Bridge and a lot of people come to ride our hills, believe it or not,” Main Street Vicksburg executive director Kim Hopkins said of what makes Bricks and Spoke special. “A lot people just have flat land, so they like to come and ride our hills. I think this year it will bring in a lot of people to ride across the bridge and be able to ride through the park.”

The ride begins in downtown Vicksburg at the Senior Center on South Street and will take riders along the red bricks roads of Washington Street and across the bridge into Louisiana.

Cyclists will have four options, and can take part in rides of 10, 30, 50 or 62 miles, although the final routes have not been determined.

“We will have where they can ride across the bridge and then we will have a short route through the park,” Hopkins said. “They can ride the whole park if they want. We will have some different routes. They don’t have to ride the whole park.”

The ride is open to cyclists of all ages and all types of bicycles. Registration is $35 through Sept. 4 and $40 from Sept. 4 through the day of the race. The registration fee includes a T-shirt, goodie bag and a water bottle.

Last year, the event attracted 185 cyclists to downtown Vicksburg.