( CNN ) With its snow-capped mountains and picturesque deserted hamlets , the Bleone Valley , where a Germanwings jet crashed Tuesday , is a stunningly beautiful but sparsely populated spot . Tiny villages are scattered along the gorge , which rises from the apple and pear orchards and the gray stone riverbed of the valley floor to heights of more than 2,000 meters ( 1.2 miles ) above sea level . Many of these villages , which were bustling communities in the 19th century , now lie abandoned or survive with just a handful of inhabitants . One dead-end road , the D107 , winds its way through Prads-Haute-Bleone , passing churches and a campsite that offers a peaceful retreat for summer hikers . But the remoteness -- which appeals to small numbers of holidaymakers looking to ski in winter or take restorative walks through the green hills in the warmer months -- may make reaching the wreckage of the Germanwings plane difficult . Gilles Gravier , director of the tourist office in Val d'Allos , told French newspaper Liberation the crash occurred in a particularly steep spot on the Trois Eveches mountain , and may have been witnessed by skiers on the area 's slopes . `` There is no access by road ; emergency crews are coming in by air , using helicopters , '' he said . Capt . Benoit Zeisser from the Gendarmerie in the nearby town of Digne told CNN the aircraft was lying in `` difficult terrain . '' Sandrine Boisse , the president of the tourism office at the Pra Loup ski resort , said she heard the plane crash and called the police and the local government office to find out what had happened . `` It was about 11 ( a.m. ) here . I was outside the garage , and we heard a strange noise , `` she said . `` And at first we thought it was an avalanche , but it was strange at this time because it was 11 . `` Something was wrong . ... We did n't know what . '' Her husband was skiing nearby and saw a plane flying at low altitude , she said . French President Francois Hollande warned `` it will take some hours for the emergency services to reach the crash site . '' Photographs posted on Twitter hours after the plane disappeared from radar showed helicopters preparing to take off , and emergency vehicles lining up ready to receive the victims ' remains . The bodies of those on board the plane are expected to be taken to the gymnasium at the local high school in Seyne les Alpes , some 10 kilometers ( 6 miles ) from the crash site , which will be used as a temporary morgue . French police in the region have pleaded with locals and visitors to stay away from the site , urging them `` not to clutter the roads , '' leaving them clear for emergency vehicles .
Resident tells Liberation she initially mistook the noise from the crash for an avalanche . Crash site in the Bleone Valley is remote , difficult to reach . Single mountain road leads to area ; police urge people to leave it clear .