Les Alpilles is a short range of low mountains 20km to the north of Arles. It is an extension of the much larger Luberon range. Although it not high - some 498 m (1,634 ft) at its highest point - the Alpilles range rises abruptly from the Rhône valley and from the very flat alluvial plain of Crau. The range is about 25 km long by about 8 to 10 km wide, running in an east-west direction between the Rhône and Durance rivers. It is where Smith and Arthur go to escape the crowds.
They encompass a wide range of habitats and flora from fertile soil at their feet planted with olive grove producing some of the best olive oil on earth through pine trees forests and then on to scrub until the rocky summits stand out worn bare by the Mistral wind from the north west at speeds that regularly exceed 80 mph in late winter and early spring. It can some times blow for days.
Walking in the hills is enhanced by the fact that they are criss-crossed by well-maintained roadways created to enable access for motorised fire fighting equipment when wildfires break out.
From their ridge one can simultaneously view the mediterranean sea 30 miles to the south and across Carpentras to the Vaucluse high mountains 50 miles to the north.
