The City of Dufferin

At Mono Cliffs Provincial Park yesterday


I had visited Hockley Valley in late October last year. Pilgrim's Cross was mostly written during November. I would have to return and spend time in the area before revising. Yesterday's drive-through hardly sufficed. Still, I was curious to see whether the fictitious city of Dufferin fit the landscape.

Approaching eastward from Orangeville, one crosses gently rolling countryside. The Hockley Valley opens suddenly, swallowing the road. A pivotal car accident takes place along that winding stretch, with the character driving upward. The road was just as I remembered it.

Further down, hilly pastures unfold and the road becomes leveller. It passes a ski resort, curves around a hillside where I could picture the mental hospital, then intersects Airport Road, which is mentioned in the novel. Downtown Dufferin should lie east of that intersection, which changes the town's orientation. The university could stand southward and uphill on Airport Road.

I had wondered why Orangeville was not situated in the scenic valley where I envisioned Dufferin. That question was answered yesterday. An interpretive sign at Mono Cliffs explained that the escarpment isolated communities below it during the 19^th Century, preventing large centres from evolving. Dufferin is not only imaginary, it's also unlikely.

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Another photo is posted in texture.