Beachcomber’s hut fuelled by rubbish he lifts from the shore
AT first glance, it looks like any other rickety old shed used for storing bits and bobs.
But this beach hut’s weather-beaten facade hides a cosy hideaway complete with stove, kitchen and comfy seats.
Neil Hughes, who spent childhood holidays at the hut, now uses it as a base for cleaning up rubbish dumped at Lunderston Bay, near Inverkip, Renfrewshire.
The grandfather of nine was given the hut by his late father, who built it 85 years ago. Mr Hughes, 74, scours the beach for pieces of discarded litter he can reuse, or as fuel for heating and cooking in the little outbuilding.
He said: ‘I’m down there most days. I always make sure that I pick up litter – there’s a lot of it washed ashore, from off boats, things like plastic bottles and timber. If it’s wood, I use it to heat the hut, for the fire. If it’s plastic, I put it in my own bin. There’s some good timber washed up off boats so I’ll dry it out and use it for fuel.’
Mr Hughes, who lives in Inverkip, has also been building a new sea wall to protect the hut, using metal cages and pieces of scaffolding found discarded on the beach.
He said: ‘My son is helping me and once the breakwater is built I will fill it with boulders from the beach.’
The former shipyard worker’s wife Mary and their grandchildren all love gathering at the hut for barbecues.
Mr Hughes said: ‘When my grandchildren visit, they don’t want to go home. We’ve got to drag them off the beach – they love the fires, and people passing by.
‘It’s amazing – people of all nationalities that walk by. People are amazed at how clean and tidy it is.
‘If there’s stuff on the beach, I use it or dispose of it. I’m there winter and summer, making sure the place is secure and left spotlessly tidy.’