Thornham has a history of smugglers with the Old Lifeboat Inn on the marshes allegedly being the place where they sorted through their trophies. Today Thornham is a bird watchers paradise and retains its wild natural beauty being an area of natural salt marsh made up of a series creeks, marshes and reedbeds. There is a harbour in the small town with fishing and leisure boats, a coal barn building at the harbour, a sluice gate and secluded beaches with excellent sands can be reached on foot. The area can have a very eerie 'moody' feel at certain times of the year. Warning – the road and marshes can flood when tides are high.