Yes, a marina berthing question!

[johnalison]

If you have both wind and tide, unless there is a ton of wind, the tide will dominate which way the boat moves, the wind which way it wants to point.

In river pontoon marina berths, like the OP, both can be seriously complicated though. Since the current is stronger in the center of the river than close to the shore, and the presence of other boats, especially larger ones, can have an effect on the wind. So as you're deciding out in the fairway, with a strong tide and a decent cross wind, you may well find that by the time you get half way down the aisle to your berth the tide is half what you had, and the wind is now swirling off the land and coming from a different direction.

It's for that reason that I struggle to recommend a ferry gliding approach to that sort of berth, as what you set up out in the aisle is quite likely to be different when you arrive at the berth.

That is a good point, though one might be able to predict what is likely to happen. My earlier answer was given in the context of my own boat and anything similar because it is very handy in these situations, and even with a folding prop I would not be too concerned about losing control before establishing stern way. A lot also depends on the width of the approach, and there could be conditions in which no amount of skill will work, which is why somewhere like Treguier has a waiting pontoon.

 

[fredrussell]

I suppose the people with the most expertise on this are the OP’s boat neighbours. Probably worth having a chat with them about their berthing strategies. I’m sure they’ll be happy to help, if only out of self interest!