Quatre Termes

La Barben - Landscape

Situates in the central area of the Bouches-du-Rhône, the Chaîne de Lançon and Massif des Quatre Termes are bordered to the North by the Chaîne des Côtes and Trévaresse massifs, to the South by Etang de Berre and the Massif de l’Arbois, to the East by the town of Aix-en-Provence, and to the West by the Massif du Pont de Rhaud.

Chaîne de Lançon is a low-lying plateau (average altitude 170 m), descending steeply northwards and southwards. Its western relief is relatively uneven and features numerous cliffs. The plateau is carved with several North-South facing valleys, with the exception of Vallon des Pièces, La Croix de Ferri and Gramenier, which cross the massif from East to West. The chain is crossed by several major roads: A7, N113 and D21.

The Massif des Quatre Termes is a natural extension of the Chaîne de Lançon. This plateau slopes slightly to the northwest it is delimited to the North by the Vallée de la Touloubre and RD972 road, and to the South by the A8 highway, agricultural plains of La Fare-les-Oliviers and Lançon. Its eastern border is marked by the agricultural plain and the urban zones of Aix and Eguilles. Lastly, its western border is marked by the EDF (Electricity Board) canal. This plateau stretches down from a height of 90 m to the extreme northwest, then rises slowly to the southeast to a height of 308 m (average altitude 240 m). It is crossed from East to West by the RD17 road, and from North to South by the RD 67E road.

The Chaîne de Lançon and Massif des Quatre Termes are exposed to strong Mistral winds. Annual rainfall is around 600 mm, with an average annual temperature of between 14 and 14.5° C.

As a result of repeated forest fires, both massifs are populated primarily by garrigue and wooded garrigue, comprising evergreen oaks or Aleppo pines. Woodland covers just 10 % of Lançon, with seedling forests of Aleppo pines and evergreen oaks on the piedmont and in the valleys. Les Quatre Termes is more densely forested (Eguilles, La Barben), with woodland covering 40% of surface area however, the plateau is mainly covered with garrigue and wooded garrigue.

Despite the close proximity of major urban centres, the Chaîne de Lançon and Quatre Termes remain essentially rural and home to remarkable and well-preserved natural areas, mainly situated around Chaîne de Lançon, Aix-en-Provence and Salon. These massifs are part of a Special Protection Zone (ZPS) and their biota is protected (Bonelli's eagle).

Information provided by Provence Tourisme