The lodges at Baker & Sons Safari are entirely off-the-grid. In the beginning stages this was born out of necessity, and later became a choice we continued with when power became available in the villages of the Rufiji for the first time – a campaign promise during the 2015 national election. We are equipped with a solar powered system, ten panels set high on a sturdy forty-foot tower which also supports a 5000 litre water tank. Beneath the tower is a 100-foot borehole water-well, drilled without the assistance of a machine. Instead we hired five local men who used a series of poles linked together with a hand auger. Water from the borehole pumps up to our tower, fills our tank, and the rest is gravity fed. Pipes and wire run underground supplying running water and power to each lodge and throughout the camp, including our new stone guest kitchen. Of the guest lodges, there are four double rooms and one large family cabin. The lodges line our waterfront, built with balconies for dining, reading, and gathering to watch the stunning evening sunsets over the Rufiji River. Each guest room has an ensuite bathroom, including shower with hot water – this too is by solar. On a second tower, slightly lower than our main tank, water cycles through glass tubes, warmed by the faithful African sun. Naturally we use what God has made available to us in the bush.
We are on the edge of Mloka village, in the district of Rufiji, within the Pwani region. ‘Pwani’ is a Swahili word meaning ‘coastal’ or ‘beach’. All of villages of the Rufiji are within the coastal region, so the ground is a mix of clay and sand. The clay we use for bricks, and the sand is for mixing with cement for mortar and small stones are used to make concrete. The stones we buy from women in the village, dug from the ground, sifted and packed in repurposed cement bags. A full bag of stones costs roughly two dollars Canadian. The water too has its source from our own land, the Rufiji River which makes up our western border. Sand, stones and water for concrete, all sourced locally. Our safari guest lodges are made from the earth, the very land upon which they stand; their construction, an opportunity to employ many from the local village.