The lower of the Emerald Lakes at sunrise. Photo NC.

View south-east towards the Desert Road area. From the little col at the opposite end of the lake the track drops steeply into the Oturere Valley.

This is where the tracks to Oturere and to Ketetahi fork: thus where Tongariro Crossing and Tongariro Northern Circuit take a different course. At this point trampers on the Tongariro Northern Circuit may choose to make a return trip to Ketetahi first, or instead they may prefer the more direct option of walking down the Oturere Valley straight away.