This small settlement depends on the leisure industry that makes use of this estuary. There is a golf course, an active sailing club, boat repair yard, cafe, and fresh fish stalls. A foot ferry runs across the River Deben linking the village with Bawdsey. The land in the background is reclaimed marshland which is now protected by an extensive system of embankments. This area of wetland was once entirely used for grazing because of the high water table but has been increasingly used for arable agriculture over the last few decades.

The River Deben is navigable between here and Woodbridge and is a haven for yachtsmen. The image was taken at high water. At other states of the tide mudflats are exposed making the river a more narrow channel. Mudflats and saltmarsh are a common feature along the Suffolk coast.

In March 1995 the government declared the Deben estuary a Special Protection Area under the European Union's bird directive and a Ramsar site. The estuary is of international importance for over-wintering birds such as Redshank, Dunlin and Brent geese which fly in from Siberia, Iceland and other northern areas.