Awirs

The climbing site is situated in a former quarry that is still the private property of the company CARMEUSE, but is no longer active.
The first official climbing activities in this quarry took place in 1989 when the Club Alpin Belge de Liège got permission from the owner. Explosives were used to exploit the quarry, resulting in quite unstable butresses. A lot of work has been done to make climbing possible. Even today, these works are still ongoing, trying to secure some portions that will not (necessarily) be climbed but are located above sectors with climbing routes.
Be aware that the buttresses outside the climbing sectors are unstable and you should not try to climb outside the official routes.

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Loose stones can fall especially by abseil or lower-off, so a helmet is highly recommended.
Camping is not authorized in the quarry.
The whole quarry is surrounded by a fence with only some entrances only for pedestrians. It is possible to go all around the quarry using a small walking path.

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At the Northside of the quarry, you can find caves where remnants of 3 Neanderthal men and also other bones from Homo Sapiens were discovered by Dr. Schmerling in 1829. In 2021, the remains were dated back to 44.200 to 40.600 cal B.P (radiocarbon).
The caves are classified as heritage and are strictly forbidden for climbers and visitors. Climbers have to respect this prohibition or the authorities could ban all climbing activities.

You can find a general map of the quarry below, or under "photos".

Face Nord:
Les Awirs Nord offers a shady overhanging face.
The crag is best enjoyed by the 6th and 7th grade climber.

From 1989 on, local climbers began to clean and open climbing routes: especially Jean-Paul Lacroix who lived in the village Les Awirs and some comrades as J. Jamblin, D. Bernerdello, A. Gilson, W. Riga.
Also, some others such as J-L Putz and J-C Vittoz opened some routes.

Around the years 2000, as the site was managed by the "national Club Alpin Belge-Belgische Alpen Club", some cleaning work and bolting took place under the lead of the "Belgian Rebolting Team" with Kobe Bellinckx and mostly of flemish climbers. Since around 2010, the quarry is managed by the french-speaking federation "Club Alpin Belge" and especially the local club "Serac" with some volunteers. A lot of work is still needed and ongoing to keep the site in a safe and climbable state.
If you have remarks, you should write a mail to rochers@clubalpin.be

Face Nord:
In the past, some aid routes were established. Making use of wooden wedges en hand-drilled bolts. The left side of this big overhang had a 10m long horizontal roof. Claude Lorenzo made a cool sport climb through this roof. Sadly the roof fell down. A geological survey in recent years made clear that the left side of the wall is still unstable. So all climbing on the left side has been banned for already several years.

Under Claude Lorenizi's roof, there was a historical cave, where a neolithic children's skull was found. So also for preservation reasons the left side is off-limits. So all sport climbing is on the right side of the wall.