Virgin River has been a huge hit for Netflix, but some fans have been left scratching their heads over a detail that has been left out of the show – and the books

A Virgin River enthusiast has been left baffled by a glaring gap in the setting of Mel Monroe (portrayed by Alexandra Breckenridge) and Jack Sheridan’s (Martin Henderson) world. The Netflix hit, nestled in a charming Northern California town, has won over fans globally, with excitement mounting for its sixth season due this December.

The series follows nurse practitioner Mel as she moves to Virgin River following a personal tragedy and falls for the local bar owner and former Marine, Jack. Despite recently being hailed as Netflix’s longest-running English-language series with a seventh season confirmed, eagle-eyed fans have noticed some discrepancies.

One is the lack of wildlife depicted, despite the show being filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia. “Having lived in BC for a few months (where VR is filmed) this summer I’m on a rewatch and I’m amazed at how bears don’t even get a mention in the show,” shared a fan on Reddit.

They recounted visiting ‘Jack’s Bar’ in Squamish where they found fresh bear droppings right outside, and noted that locals often carry bear spray or even firearms for safety in remote areas. “Meanwhile Mel, Brie (Zibby Allen), Cameron (Mark Ghanime), Jack and Denny (Kai Bradbury) are all out there running and fishing on the trails without so much as a bottle of water between them.”

She falls for the local bar owner and former Marine, Jack (Image: (Image: NETFLIX))

A devoted Virgin River fan has critiqued the series for leaving out a prominent bear danger plot from its adaptation of Robyn Carr’s novels. “Mel is even wearing earbuds so wouldn’t be able to hear approaching wildlife. She and Jack think a rustle in the bushes is a squirrel.”

The fan noticed that whilst the series isn’t set in bear-heavy British Columbia, references to bear encounters from the books are missing.

“Now I’m reading the books for the first time and there’s the thing they left out: Jack’s Bar has hunting trophies all over the walls and Jack tells Mel how he had to shoot a mother bear who was charging him when he was fishing at the river,” the viewer expressed, pointing out lost depth in the storyline, further quoting, “‘You don’t take a minute to load your rifle if a bear is charging you. Bear fish in the same rivers we do.'”

In reality, California, where Virgin River is located, is home to an estimated 25,000 to 35,000 black bears, posing potential hazards that contrast with the series’ serene setting. One local argued that bear encounters are rare in Humboldt County, CA—where the story is set: “Because it’s set in Humboldt County, CA. We have bears here too, but they don’t roam that freely and aren’t seen that often.”

Another resident claimed, “Never been a bear attack here ever. Bears are smart and have manners and know how to cohabitate peacefully with the humans that are squatting on their land.”

However, some Virgin River fans might find it odd that this aspect is completely overlooked in the series, especially when the main character Mel goes into the forest alone without any form of self-protection.