Chaîne de l'Estaque

Port de la Lave with the hills in the background

The Chaîne de l'Estaque or Chaîne de la Nerthe is a range of hills in the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône . The limestone hills extend along the Mediterranean coast in an east-west direction over a length of 28 kilometers with a width of about eight kilometers.

The range of hills extends over the territory of a total of ten municipalities: Marseille, Les Pennes-Mirabeau , Gignac-la-Nerthe , Le Rove , Ensuès-la-Redonne , Carry-le-Rouet , Sausset-les-Pins , Châteauneuf-les- Martigues , Martigues and Port-de-Bouc . The name of the chain comes from the Marseille district of L'Estaque at its east end. The alternative name La Nerthe is derived from the hamlet of La Nerthe near L'Estaque.

Towards the Mediterranean , the range of hills largely forms a cliff, the Côte Bleue . At 278 meters above sea level, the Tête Auguste in the east of the Chaîne de l'Estaque is the highest point. It forms a kind of isthmus between the Mediterranean Sea and the Étang de Berre .

Coordinates: 43 ° 21 '  N , 5 ° 10'  E