Our Mountain Retreat

1 / 10
Debra and Hunter Moss own and operate Moss Mountain Inn, their two-suite bed-and-breakfast mountain retreat near Glacier National Park.
Debra and Hunter Moss own and operate Moss Mountain Inn, their two-suite bed-and-breakfast mountain retreat near Glacier National Park.
2 / 10
"Sheryl Crow" scares birds away from the garden.
3 / 10
The sunroom at Moss Mountain Inn makes a spacious greenhouse, and it collects heat that helps warm the house during the winter.
The sunroom at Moss Mountain Inn makes a spacious greenhouse, and it collects heat that helps warm the house during the winter.
4 / 10
Debra and Hunter Moss hike frequently in Glacier National Park, which is near their home.
Debra and Hunter Moss hike frequently in Glacier National Park, which is near their home.
5 / 10
Debra and Hunter Moss moved to Montana in the summer of 2003.
Debra and Hunter Moss moved to Montana in the summer of 2003.
6 / 10
Hunter volunteers with the local fire department.
Hunter volunteers with the local fire department.
7 / 10
Debra and Hunter Moss collect enough firewood to heat Moss Mountain Inn throughout the long Montana winter.
Debra and Hunter Moss collect enough firewood to heat Moss Mountain Inn throughout the long Montana winter.
8 / 10
Debra hikes in Glacier National Park.
Debra hikes in Glacier National Park.
9 / 10
Winter in Montana.
Winter in Montana.
10 / 10
Six acres of larch, pine and birch trees surround Moss Mountain Inn.
Six acres of larch, pine and birch trees surround Moss Mountain Inn.

My husband, Hunter, and I live outside Columbia Falls, Montana in a mountain retreat we’ve established at the edge of Glacier National Park. We arrived here three years ago with a simple goal: to live a quiet, self-reliant life in this beautiful natural environment.

Most people I know think we’re crazy for moving to this cold climate. I grew up in south Florida, and Hunter lived on St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands for 20 years. But, quite frankly, I’d had enough after spending the first half of my life in a hot, humid place and weathering 15 hurricanes — several while I lived aboard a sailboat. Hunter feels the same way I do about heat and hurricanes. We met on St. Croix shortly after it was devastated by Hurricane Hugo in 1989.

Hunter has a background in the wine and restaurant industries, and I’ve had several careers: archaeologist, paralegal, editor, commodity futures trader, freelance writer and photographer. We came to Montana in the summer of 2003, when I applied for an archivist position in Glacier. The person who held the position decided at the last moment to keep it, but we did not learn this until after we arrived in Montana. Both Hunter and I really wanted to stay for the summer, so we started looking for seasonal work. We were hired to work in one of the park’s gift shops and spent all our free time exploring the park and falling in love with its million acres of pristine Rocky Mountain wilderness. When summer was over, we spent the rest of the year traveling, but Glacier kept calling to us. We returned the next summer to work in the gift shop and decided to stay.

Running a Bed-and-Breakfast

That winter we found the perfect house. We discovered it on a cold day, when the house was deserted and the snow was so deep we had to slowly break a path to the front door. We both had the same thought — this would make a perfect bed-and-breakfast. Neither of us had ever contemplated owning a B&B, but it just seemed natural. Moss Mountain Inn was born.

  • Published on Aug 1, 2006
Online Store Logo
Need Help? Call 1-800-234-3368