A weed-control contractor drove a gigantic ATV with balloon tires, called a SHERP, through the Blackfoot River near Missoula, Montana, lumbering right past a flabbergasted fishing guide, who captured video of it.
Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) verified that the video is authentic, and that what the driver did was illegal. After contacting the operator, the agency was promised that it won’t happen again.
“No citation has been issued at this point, but there is a possibility that one may still be issued,” according to an FWP statement sent to Cowboy State Daily about the Monday incident.
‘It’s Like A Big Tonka Truck’
Kyle Rausch is the owner and operator of Missoula-based R.R. 406 Fly Fishing guide service.
He told Cowboy State Daily that during his many years floating rivers, he’s seen some strange things. But nothing prepared him for the sight of the SHERP plowing through the river — right past his boat and through prime bull trout spawning pools.
“It’s the most absurd thing I’ve ever seen,” Rausch said.
After a moment of initial shock, Rausch got mad.
“I had steam coming out of my ears,” he said.
Even so, he maintained enough composure to catch cellphone video of the incident, which he later reported to an FWP warden.
“When they asked me to describe the vehicle, I told them, ‘It’s like a big Tonka truck,’” he said.
SHERPs Touted As Unstoppable
SHERP was founded in Ukraine in 2012 and touts its massive all-terrain vehicles as the ultimate go-anywhere machines.
SHERPs retail for $115,000 to $125,000 or more, depending upon options.
Their massive balloon tires allow them to scramble over rocks, plow through muck, and even float. The company claims that it’s virtually impossible to get them stuck.
Rausch said he watched the SHERP churn along the riverbed through shallow spots. And it did, indeed, float in the deeper parts of the river with its gigantic treads essentially acting as paddles to move the vehicle forward.
He said that he and others saw the SHERP get hung up on a snag in the river for a while, but the driver got going again after “rocking it back and forth” to break free.
Muddying The Waters
Rausch said he heard the SHERP before he saw it, and at first thought somebody was ripping around a nearby boat ramp parking lot with a side-by-side ATV.
Once he caught sight of the SHERP, he and others watched it go back and forth across the river more than once, as well as being driven straight through the channel.
In the sections of the river where the tires contacted the riverbed, the SHERP made a horrible mess.
The tires churned up massive amounts of mud, moss and other debris.
“We had to wait 10 minutes for the water to clear enough to start fishing again,” he said.
And it happened more than once, Rausch said.
“I had to play leapfrog with him about three times and wait for the water to clear up each time,” he said.
That was aggravating, because fishing is on limited “hoot owl” hours on the Blackfoot River now, because of high water temperatures, Rausch said.
That means the river is closed from 2 p.m. until midnight.
So, every time the SHERP made a gigantic mess in the water, that meant more precious fishing time lost.
The Wrong Approach To Weed Control
Rausch said that the SHERP was escorted by some people walking along the bank. When he asked them what they were doing, they told him they were spraying noxious weeds.
FWP confirmed that.
“The video shows a weed control coordinator contracted by Powell County. Our regional and state staff had numerous inquiries from the public regarding the work being done,” according the FWP.
The contractor didn’t have a permit to drive in the river and was told to stop doing it, FWP stated.
“Once our fisheries staff was made aware of the video, and after further investigation, they reached out to Powell County to immediately stop the use of a vehicle driving in the river,” the agency reported. “Staff quickly determined the actions exhibited in the video required a special stream permit, specifically a stream protection act permit 124, which the county did not have.”
FWP values the county’s weed control work, but driving in the water isn’t acceptable, the agency stated.
“Simply put, operating a motor vehicle impacting Montana's stream bed should not happen without a permit whether it’s along the Blackfoot or any stream across the state,” according to FWP.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
