How Indigenous Guards Saved A Colombian Lake From Overtourism

Before the two-hour ascension to the lake, a shaman performs a ritual in praise of the cycle of life (Credit: AFP)

In the crater of a semi-dormant volcano in southwest Colombia lies a sacred lake of startling green which used to draw a steady stream of garbage-tossing tourists before Indigenous leaders took back control.

Ascending the Azufral volcano which rises to 4,070 meters (2.5 miles) in the western Colombian Andes is not for the faint-hearted.