En-Vau

A lookout and a calanque

En-Vau lookout

As its name suggests, this lookout, perched at 170 metres clinging to the cliffs in the middle of the pine trees has a clear view of En-Vau calanque. Its location in the axis of the fault makes it even more impressive. The enormous mass of the Castel Vieil plateau is at your feet, while in the distance Cap Canaille closes the Bay of Cassis. Further away, looms Cap Sicié.

Just below the viewpoint lies Oule calanque which is inaccessible by land. Jean Giono describes it in terms that inspire vertigo:

"The view of Oule (which means "cauldron") calanque from above is an unusual sight. Like a stone cauldron with perfectly vertical walls, nearly 100 metres deep, it is rightly named. Over 200 metres wide, this abyss has a passage to the sea measuring 25 to 30 strides. It is full of deep water, purple, hardly tempered by the reflection of the alabaster walls, the slightest noise resounds. Tiny wave that caress the rock in calm weather echo extravagantly, swifts, sea swallonws, seagulls and Northern Gannets flap their wings as if all the washerwomen in the sky were beating God's laundry together, while the wind makes the cosmic kitchens growl. Like the others, it is also possible to visit the calanque from the sea but less often, it inspires fear rather than enthusiasm."

En-Vau calanque

The walk from the lookout to the calanque takes one hour. Surrounded by two steep walls, it is often very crowded on sunny days. There is room for 400 towels comfortably, but in summer, numbers often climb to 1,200 people at the same time.

A sea shuttle transported passengers from Cassis port to the beach until the 90s. Landing has been banned since the 2000s and moorings distanced from the shore. Waste bins have been removed so that visitors take their rubbish home for sorting, as is the case for all uninhabited calanques.

The blue trail to the lookouts

On the shore opposite the lookout, at about 100 metres, a bleu trail connects En-Vau with Port-Pin along the coastline. Created in 2007 by an inclusive-recruitment program, it was designed to provide several typical viewpoints of the Calanques. This is the perfect place to stop and contemplate the view, observing the turquoise water through coastal pins and limestone rock from a variety of perspectives.

En-Vau in the arts

The site has inspired many artists, including painter Jean-Baptiste Olive who featured it in several works including one which is exhibited at the Musée d’Art de Toulon. But cinema is where En-Vau calanque has featured the most: with a graveyard in Les Marins perdus, an ancient boat transporting Protis in Honoré de Marseille, a submarine in L’Armée des ombres, and a helicopter in Fantômas)! See below for two sequences.

"I walked along the coastline on all the customs trails; at the foot of the cliffs, the long tourmented coasts, the Medietterean no longer had that sugary langour that had sickened me elsewhere; in the glorious mornings, the sea beats the promontories violently, showering them in glittering white, and I had the impression that if I plunged my hand in it, it would sever my fingers."

Simone de Beauvoir