There are probably few places where you can order your drinks from a bar without stepping onto dry land, yet during high spring tides on the River Orwell at the quaint village of Pin Mill this is entirely possible.  With yachtsmen being served from the windows of the local pub whilst still aboard their boats.  The picturesque Butt and Oyster Inn, which is lapped each day by the waters of the River Orwell was first granted a licence during the 16th century.  Rumours abound about its connections with smugglers in days gone past and another claim to fame is the fact that the BBC TV series Lovejoy also did some filming at the Butt and Oyster. The Butt is another name for the Fluke, a flat fish.

The area around Pin Mill flourishes with houseboats with many of them having been made from converted Thames barges. Pin Mill is set in an area of outstanding natural beauty, designated a conservation area it  attracts artists and birdwatchers.  There are many good walks around here with some that actually follow the river and the National Trust manage some eighty acres of woodland around Pin Mill. 

Cargo from sea going ships would be offloaded onto barges at Pin Mill to undertake the rest of the journey to Ipswich down the River Orwell. You can still see large container vessels making their way upstream to the docks at Ipswich, past the wading birds such as Snipe, Redshank and Lapwing. In July each year at Buttermans Bay the Pin Mill Barge Match takes place involving salvaged barges, a very popular event.  

Pin Mill is accessed by a narrow road off the B1456 at Chelmondiston, as parts of this road are single track it can become a bit congested during the main holiday seasons.

The children's author Arthur Ransome (famous for his Swallows and Amazons publications) used to live in the village keeping his boat the Nancy Blackett moored on the river here.  He wrote his much loved book "We didn't mean to go to sea" based on Pin Mill and the River Orwell.  In 1937 Arthur Ransome commissioned a larger galley which was built by the boatyard at Pin Mill, this yacht he named the Selina King. His yacht the Nancy Blackett was found and restored and sails the Orwell River in the care of the Nancy Blackett Trust, which preserves and maintains her and shows her at maritime festivals.

The nearby village of Chelmondiston has everything you need for basic holiday supplies with post office and general stores. Further a field is Ipswich with all its attractions and shops.

On a slightly darker note the last recorded outbreak of bubonic plague was recorded at Pin Mill.