State parks hosting ruck hikes for veterans

Two Bastrop County state parks are joining a total 20 across Texas in hosting ruck hikes for veterans’ mental health and Suicide Prevention and Awareness Month.

Bastrop State Park and Smithville’s Buecher State Park invite veterans, their families and community members to join a Veteran Mental Health Awareness Ruck Hike running throughout September. Organizers said the events are about connection and honoring those we’ve lost, also looking to raise awareness of mental health struggles faced by military veterans.

Hikers are welcome with or without a ruck, a weighted backpack also called a rucksack, which military members use to carry their gear.