A sleepy, isolated island community inNicaragua, nestled at the foot of one of Central America's most active volcanoes,faces an uncertain future. But the danger doesn’t come from theperpetual risk of geological disaster. The threat is manmade.

Over the past decade, tourism to Isla Ometepehas grown as word of its Eden-like natural beauty has spread. But this dualvolcanic island in the middle of Lake Nicaragua, often dubbed a “mini-Amazon”,recently found itself at the centre of a controversial mega-engineeringproject: a Chinese-run, interoceanic canal that will be deeper and longer thanPanama’s, ideal for giant cargo ships.

The proposed 278km route, connecting theCaribbean Sea and Pacific Ocean, will carve through Lake Nicaragua, potentiallydisplacing the surrounding rainforest and threatening indigenous communities.The route will also bring the supertankers right past Ometepe’s Eden.

Work on the canal officially began inDecember 2014, sparking a wave of protests from those who are worried about losingtheir homes, and the damage the canal might cause to the environment. Doubtshave also been raised over whether there will be enough funding to complete thecanal within the allotted five-year plan.

The 267sqkm island, home to a population ofjust under 30,000, receives about 40,000 visitors a year. Between the roughferry ride over and the island’s bone-shaking roads, it’s understandable thatvisitor numbers are still relatively low, even with the island’s incrediblebeauty.

On the day that I crossed Lake Nicaragua –Central America's largest body of freshwater, so vast that SpanishConquistadors believed it was open sea – Isla Ometepe’s volcanoes were engulfedin a heavy cloud clover that burst as soon as I stepped onto the port. The lushvegetation beamed Day-Glo green against the remaining grey in the sky. Birdsand butterflies scattered while villagers carried on with their days. Turnsout, the only thing that moved fast here was the weather.

I was staying at Hacienda Mérida, aformer farm/coffee-processing plant-turned-ecolodge located inVolcan MaderasNational Park. Its owner, Alvaro Molina, was one of the first to bring tourismto the island when he opened the lodge in 2001.

A jetty from the lodge offereduninterrupted views of Conceptión, the 1,610m-tall, very active volcano thattowered over Lake Nicaragua. Ometepe's extinct volcano, Maderas, with itsjagged rainforest-covered peak, formed the lodge’s backdrop. Instead of trekking,swimming, kayaking, cycling and horse riding –all popularactivities here –I chose a hammock with a view, and flopped.

The next morning, I set off early to kayakon Río Istiam, a river and swamp that cuts inland through the middle of thehourglass-shaped island. On the 3km paddle towards the river mouth, I passedvillagers swimming and fishing in the lake. My guide, Maykel Carillo, saidlocals used to stay out of the water because it was once infested with bull sharks.By the 1980s, overfishing and a shark fin trade wiped-out the population, butsome say a few still lurk under the surface. I dipped in my paddle with extra caution.