Tumbleweeds are famous for marking the perimeters of western movies. The movie begins and ends with a sole tumbleweed rolling in the wind for miles, a reminder of the stark, expansive climate that will outlive both the desert city and its inhabitants. Yet in real life the tumbleweed, also called the Russian thistle, is a non-native plant that can be very pesky to homeowners.

The very unusual tumbleweed storm in Bozeman planted several feet of the weed covering sheds, burying mailboxes, and blocking driveways. Cindy Bowker, a local resident, had to tunnel through the weeds to get to her car. “It was up over the headlights,” she said. “It was all the way up the steps and covered our front door.”

Some residents believe that a nearby farm is the cause, as half its crop went bad last year, leaving the weeds to sprout on over 80 acres.

Not the typical western anymore.