Virgin River is a feel-good drama series on Netflix and the second season is now on the streaming platform. The series follows nurse Mel Monroe (played by Alexandra Breckenridge) as she relocates from the city to a peaceful neighbourhood in Northern California. Fans are wondering whether Virgin River is a real place, and Express.co.uk has everything you need to know.
Is Virgin River a real place?
In the first season of Virgin River, fans saw Mel Monroe escape her old life in LA and move to a remote, rural neighborhood, which formed the series’ title.
The series is based on the books of the same name and the setting for the novels is among the dense woods and vast lakes of Northern California.
Fans may be interested to hear filming for the series actually took place in Vancouver, British Columbia.
This is because sadly the quaint and beautiful town of Virgin River does not actually exist.
The setting for the series is viewers’ idea of heaven, with its cosy log cabins, snowy mountain tops and lakes stretching as far as the eye can see.
City girl Mel even grows to love the town, after her new friend Jack Sheridan (Martin Henderson) renovated her log cabin.
READ MORE: Virgin River recap: What happened to Mark Monroe in Virgin River?
She was not convinced she had made the right decision when she first turned up to find her new home in a state of disrepair.
Mayor Hope McCrea (Annette O’Toole) had “oversold” the cabin and Mel was angry she had been deceived.
Hope managed to convince Mel to stay the night, and she eventually roped Jack in to show her around and make her fall in love with the surroundings.
He took her on walks and she spent lots of time at his bar, and over time she learned to love the environment.
She would regularly be spotted going for a run through the stunning woodland and fans have been wishing they could experience the same surroundings.
Viewers may not be able to visit the fictional Virgin River, but the precise filming location is open to the public.
Some of the main filming locations include Snug Cove, New Westminster, Squamish, Port Coquitlam and Agassiz.
Fans took to Twitter to share their thoughts on the location, with one saying: “Virgin River is breathtakingly beautiful I want to cry.
“Jack’s pub overlooking the river, Mel’s running trail, and even her cottage Loudly crying face It would be nice to stay there for a month or two. *googling the filming location and adding this to my ‘cottage stays’ list. [sic]”
Another fan said: “Just finished the first two episodes of season one, love the location this series is filmed.”
The beautiful setting certainly adds to the feel-good element of the show, despite it involving some harrowing storylines.
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Another fan said on Twitter: “Virgin river was shot at such beautiful locations, those mountains, the greenery, the lake I must say pleasing to the eye [sic].”
In the series, Mel was trying to escape her old life following the tragic death of her husband Mark (Daniel Gillies) for which she blamed herself.
Her family tried to convince her to stay in LA, but she was determined to prove to herself she could start a new life and get back on her feet.
Jack became an obstacle as she started to fall for him, but denied her feelings as she did not want to betray her late husband.
After Jack renovated her log cabin and turned it into a home for her, she realised how much he truly cared about her.
Mel’s cabin is a sanctuary most people could only ever dream of experiencing, with its open fire and fairy lights.
The town is full of other secret havens, including Jack’s secret baseball set-up, where he visits when he needs to take time out and clear his head.
While viewers are unable to travel in the current climate, they are enjoying the stunning scenery from their homes in the hope they can one day visit the beautiful location in person.
Mel actress Breckenridge recently moved from the city to a remote town in real life, and she said the experience was very different, but she loved the beauty and tranquillity of her new home.
Virgin River is on Netflix now