Turtle Islands, Sierra Leone

Turtle Islands

The village on Bakie Island (in the Turtle Islands, off the coast of Sierra Leone) has recently refurbished a guest house that was built decades ago by a Frenchman, but which had fallen into ruin during the war. There are now four very comfortable rooms, with in-suite facilities. They will prepare meals for you at a very reasonable rate. I can't remember what the price per night was, but I paid $100 for three full days and nights, room and board all inclusive, other than drinks. The particularly nice thing about it (and the reason I'm putting together this page) is that the proceeds from the guest house are shared by the whole village, I know that the profits from 2010 were used to purchase a new communal fishing net. Because the income is shared, you get a very warm welcome from everybody in the village.


It's a stunningly beautiful location, you can spend your days lazing about swimming and reading, hiring local boys to climb a tree and pick you fresh coconuts, or hiring a dugout to paddle you around for a few hours (there wasn't a set price, but I offered the same $10 price I had paid for a canoe ride on Tiwai, which was gratefully accepted). I didn't occur to me while I was there, so I didn't do it, but I'm sure you could arrange to go out fishing with somebody from the village.


There's no phone reception on Bakie Island, but the fellow there who coordinates things (Isagah Jalloh, who became a friend) takes a boat out every day to a spot where there is reception to check his messages. The best plan is to text him, and then he will call you back when he gets the message. His number is 076 440 230. He knows a boat captain in Tombo who is reliable, so can arrange a safe (but likely a bit expensive) trip out to the islands. You can also take the weekly boat from Shenge or Plaintain Island, agan, contact Isagah for the details of the schedule. 


There's really no reason you can't just show up (slim chance that they will be booked up), but it's probably best to email Isagah before at: isagah_jalloh@yahoo.com 


Although he certainly checks his email more intermittently than his phone, so texting is best.




When I went, I wasn't sure what facilities and services were going to be available (I just rocked up on the beach and got lucky) so I had brought my own water packets with me. It turned out that this was a good thing, because packets of water were not available on the island. You should plan on bringing your own, which is easy enough, ask for a "gross" before you leave the mainland.


Here are a few pictures I took while I was there: