The time to arrive at Yarmouth is at slack water. There will be very little current. The ebb current is still flowing strongly at low water, adding considerable difficulties and dangers. I try to estimate my arrival time by judging my speed from the landmarks passed or the GPS. If I’m too early I sail back up the river again for a bit. It is probably better to be slightly late than too early. The flood is weak early on. I have managed, at the cost of some vigorous quanting and paddling, to go through an hour or more after slack water against the flood tide. Also the penalty for failure is simply that you have to turn round and go back. Arriving early can mean being carried down towards the road bridge and a panic to get moored up.

Aim to have everything ready well in advance. Fenders deployed, jobs allocated, mooring lines ready, lifejackets on. Also have the mudweight ready to deploy, on deck and with a long line (30ft or more) secured at the other end.

If you have a mobile phone with you, a call to the Yacht Station is a good idea. You will be able to check that the tide is running as predicted and also the staff will be on the lookout to give you a hand. I usually call twice, once to check on the tides before going below Stracey Arms and again when I get to Marina Keys, to let them know I’m nearly there. When I get into Yarmouth I also ring Breydon Bridge to arrange for a lift.

Coming down the Bure you will be on a falling tide. The river is also relatively narrow. Stay well clear of the banks. If you go aground you are likely to stay there until the tide is on its way back up. In particular keep well clear of the areas marked by posts.

Unless you are happy dropping your mast under way, you will need to moor up for masting. There are masting moorings on the east bank immediately above the A47 road bridge. These leave little room for error, especially if you are early and the tide is still ebbing, so I usually moor up on the lower part of the yacht station. Rarely is it a true lee shore, as the high banks and buildings tend to funnel the wind so that it blows up and down the river. However, if coming down early with the wind behind you, mooring can be a tricky wind against tide decision. Better to kill time upstream and wait until slack water. You can then choose your approach to suit the wind alone. If you intend to stay at Yarmouth, then it is vital to moor using springs to allow a comfortable and safe lie at all states of the tide.

These days it is fairly easy to quant through the bridges. The river is now shallow enough for the quant to touch bottom. Some form of paddle is useful though as actually under the bridges there is not enough headroom to lift the quant for planting. (If you’re careful going under Vauxhall bridge, you can get it up between the girders). Keep to the marked channel through the bridges, and once under Vauxhall bridge, aim to moor up to one of the red Dolphins on the west side. It can be a bit shallow round the first, so I generally go on to the second. Be very careful to avoid damaging your boat on the barnacle encrusted uprights. Fend carefully as you come alongside and take great care with placing fenders. If you haven’t rung the bridge, or called them on VHF, now is your last chance. If you have they will be watching out for you.

With the mast up you can set sail again. Be sure to leave the yellow marker to Starboard as you go round to head up to the lifting bridge. They will leave the lift to the last minute, but you will see the red lights go on, the siren will sound and the road traffic will stop. That is a clear indication that the bridge is about to lift. Very occasionally, especially in a strong wind, you may need to make a quick turn back to avoid arriving too soon. As you go through the bridge, you will often lose way as the bridge blankets the wind, but as the tide is now with you it should be easy to drift through.

Very occasionally you will not be able to arrange a bridge lift. This is most likely when slack water coincides with the morning rush hour. Also if you are in a private craft and navigating at night you may be outside the manned hours (06:00-22:00 from mid April to mid October, 08:00-17:00 at other times). There are two options. The marker posts both above and below the bridge have “jug handle” moorings, so you can sail from the dolphins to one of the posts, drop the mast and paddle through to one the other side to hoist again, (forget the quant, it’s too deep), or you can opt to paddle all the way. I find the latter is more efficient. Once through, either raise the mast under way or moor to one of the "jug handle" moorings on the posts above the bridge. In a strong west wind though, you might be better leaving it for another day.