Le Garlaban and Baume du Plantier from Camoin

Yet another climb towards Garlaban, but this one stands out, firstly because it starts from Camoin, but also because the return route via Pas des Quatre Fers is relatively little used. Jean Camoin was the name of a15th-century landowner who owned a lot of land around Garlaban (hence the name of the locality in Aubagne and the district in Marseille).

Details

20386539
Creation:
Last update:
Last review:
  • Walking
    Activity: Walking
  • ↔
    Distance: 9.08 km
  • ◔
    Average duration: 4h 25 
  • ▲
    Difficulty: Moderate

  • ⚐
    Back to start: Yes
  • ↗
    Ascent: + 637 m
  • ↘
    Descent: - 632 m

  • ▲
    Highest point: 710 m
  • ▼
    Lowest point: 268 m

Photos

Description of the walk

The car park is located at the end of Chemin de la Croix du Garlaban in Aubagne. Five or six cars can easily park there.

(S/E) Take the steeply sloping track northwards. Follow it for 1 km, ignoring the paths on either side, until you reach a fork.

(1) Turn left. This is the real start of the climb to Garlaban. Climb for 1600 m, ignoring two paths on the right.

(2) Continue straight ahead, ignoring a path on the left. Further up, continue to ignore the paths on the right.

(3) A small cairn marks the start of a path on the left, which is not very easy to find (a GPS is useful in this case). Continue climbing towards the south-west to go around the clearly visible rocky outcrop that marks the start of the Garlaban plateau.

(4) Follow the path along the ridge to reach the Croix du Garlaban and enjoy the 360° view.

(5) Descend via the clearly visible path to the northeast. This path often splits into several branches that all lead to the same point: a grove that marks the northern base of Garlaban.

(4) Head west to reach the track about 50 metres away.

(6) Take the clearly marked path directly opposite, heading due west.

(7) Turn right after 350 metres. A cairn indicates the right direction. Then tackle a relatively tricky descent (the Pas de la Heath) towards the Vallon des Piches. Beautiful views of this unspoilt valley accompany you along the trail, which is sometimes terraced.

(8) Climb to the left, south-east, towards the Baume du Plantier visible above.

(9) At this point, you have two options:
- either turn left to continue the hike.
- Or visit the cave known as Manon or Plantier, located at the bottom of a terrace. Walk along the edge of the terrace.
Continue along the path that climbs up the ridge and rejoins a track.

(10) Go up to the left and walk 1,600 metres to the foot of the Garlaban.

(6) Find a path at the edge of the Monolith that descends southwards towards the Pas des Quatre Fers. There is no room for error: there is only one path.
This path is a little difficult with a tricky section at Pas des Quatre Fers.
Continue down into the valley, ignoring two paths on the left towards the end of the route.
Find the track you took on the way up. Follow it in the opposite direction and return to the car park (S/E).

Waypoints

  1. S/E : km 0 - alt. 275 m - Car park. Chemin de la Croix du Garlaban
  2. 1 : km 1.03 - alt. 274 m - Fork in the road. Trail on the left
  3. 2 : km 2.3 - alt. 523 m - Crossroads
  4. 3 : km 2.74 - alt. 606 m - Cairn, path on the left
  5. 4 : km 2.93 - alt. 665 m - Crossroads A/R towards Le Garlaban
  6. 5 : km 3.15 - alt. 710 m - Croix du Garlaban - Garlaban
  7. 6 : km 3.54 - alt. 628 m - Crossroads of the circular. Towards La Baume - Col de Garlaban (628m)
  8. 7 : km 3.85 - alt. 633 m - Towards Pas de la Heath
  9. 8 : km 5.19 - alt. 460 m - Path on the left
  10. 9 : km 5.29 - alt. 472 m - Grotte du Plantier ou Grotte de Manon
  11. 10 : km 5.45 - alt. 510 m - Track on the left
  12. S/E : km 9.08 - alt. 275 m - Car park. Chemin de la Croix du Garlaban

Notes

Reviews and comments

4.8 / 5
Based on 7 reviews

Reliability of the description
4.7 / 5
Ease of following the route
4.9 / 5
Route interest
4.9 / 5
MontagneSacree13
MontagneSacree13

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Apr 07, 2025
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Great route, which climbs quite a bit in the first section up to the cross.
Very good route, we used the paper PDF map and the Viso GPS, so it was impossible to get lost
What's more, we followed the yellow markings for most of the way, which also made the route easier!
Superb scenery and magnificent views!

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cigalelc
cigalelc

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Dec 27, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Excellent hike, without difficulties, alternating between ascents and descents. Magnificent landscapes.

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Marine La blondinette
Marine La blondinette

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : May 19, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

An easy hike completed on 19 May 2024 in 4 hours and 40 minutes with long breaks, so it can easily be done in under 4 hours.
The route is very reliable and the great advantage is that the hike is not busy except at points of interest (cross / cave / engravings).
The landscapes along the entire hike are very varied and magnificent.
We recommend this hike 100%.

A few tips: set off early in the morning to get a parking space and, above all, don't do it on a hot day as there is no shade. Finally, be careful on the descent as there are lots of stones that can roll and cause falls.

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claire poggio
claire poggio

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Mar 21, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

Thank you for this beautiful, wild and uncrowded route in the Garlaban massif. The difficult sections mentioned require careful attention, but in my opinion there are no technical difficulties. The trails are well marked and stable. You just need to watch out for loose stones that could cause you to fall. We had no trouble finding parking, but it was a weekday.

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Aquariel
Aquariel

Overall rating : 5 / 5

Date of your route : Feb 04, 2024
Reliability of the description : ★★★★★ Very good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : Yes

We left early, so we had no trouble parking. When we returned in the afternoon, there were cars everywhere and in every direction.
A beautiful route with spectacular and varied landscapes, a pleasant physical challenge, particularly above the cave and then at the Pas des Quatre Fers, discovering the engravings...
On the way back from the circular, there were lots of people at the engravings and at the top of Garlaban. The Pas des Quatre Fers was much less crowded.

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phdelgrange
phdelgrange

Overall rating : 4.7 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 20, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★★ Very good
Route interest : ★★★★★ Very good
Very busy route : No

A very diverse hike (valley, panoramic views, cave, geology, steps, fire hydrants, engraved rocks, etc.).
It is relatively sheltered from the mistral wind.
We didn't meet many people (except at the top of Garlaban), even though it was a sunny Sunday.
A few details to make the description more reliable and enhance the interest of the hike:
- At point 7, the trail is marked in yellow
- At point 9, the markings are light blue; above Manon's cave, you can turn left to reach the deer cave 200 m away at the scree visible from the light blue trail. Then return to the light blue trail.
- After point 10, take a wide path that crosses the DFCI. At the second intersection with the DFCI, follow the sign for "Gravures". For a short detour, you will see the world of Pagnol engraved on hundreds of rocks.
- For the return trip, the trail is marked in yellow.
We completed the entire hike in 4 hours and 40 minutes, with an elevation gain of 670 metres.
We highly recommend this hike.

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Kristin7
Kristin7

Overall rating : 4 / 5

Date of your route : Nov 12, 2022
Reliability of the description : ★★★★☆ Good
Ease of following the route : ★★★★☆ Good
Route interest : ★★★★☆ Good
Very busy route : Yes

The paths taken are marked. It would have been good to mention this in the description, as it would have been more reassuring and clearer.

The estimated time is accurate.

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