09Aug/23
Helene is for sale – £4500 or best offer
A124 Helene — a British Classic with a Big Personality — is offered for sale. She is sound, well looked after and a pleasure to sail. Very comfortable cockpit. Helene has benefitedRead More…
07Jul/23
Alde & Ore Rally – Diversion
We left Wrabness at 4 on Thursday and spent the night in Hamford Water. Weather fantastic and the Backwaters magic. This morning we sailed out and up the coast choosing to divertRead More…
23Jun/23
Two Atalantas on the River Stour together on Midsummer’s day
A89 Colchide and A124 Helene arranged to meet on the River Stour on Midsummer’s day. Is this the first time two Atalantas have sailed together this year? Title: 21 June 2023 (16)-9bb4654cCaption:Read More…
06May/23
Helene’s cabin update
This spring the painters and decorators had a go at updating Helene’s cabin. Interesting comparison with Nick’s 2015 photo below. Title: 2015 08 Helene East Coast 021-f6d16bbeCaption: August 2015
03May/23
New mylar keel gaskets
Following work this spring to address water ingress along the bottom of Helene’s keel boxes, new slot gaskets were installed using Hawk 150mm mylar gasket material obtained from RS Sailing. The badlyRead More…
23Mar/23
Centre line repairs
Over the last several years water has leaked into Helene’s forward cabin. The amount was relatively small – more annoying than anything else – but something was not right. Everything pointedRead More…
12Nov/22
Winter Quarters, 2021/22
This is a late, but nevertheless. Helene was lifted on 18 October 2021 at Mistley Marine on the River Stour in Essex. It proved to be a somewhat quirky but very pleasantRead More…
14May/22
A124 Helene reaches new heights
I popped by to help ready Helene for final fitting out tasks – putting her ‘in the air’ for work inside the keelboxes on the new posts at the rear. It isRead More…
The Wrabness tender mystery. Part 2
On taking over a boat it is common to inherit a certain number of “special” items. Dredged from the depths of locker or lazarette, damp and probably rusty, their identity andRead More…
23Sep/21
The Wrabness tender mystery. Part 1
The plan was for an overnight to Pin Mill or the Walton Backwaters. We left Manningtree under sail around 1130 anticipating the ebb, without even a cat’s paw of breeze. TheRead More…
30Jul/21
Cockpit comfort – orientation and curves
Since the mid-1990 I have owned a number of small boats including a Devon Yawl, Cornish Shrimper, Cornish Crabber (Mk 1), Kingfisher 22+ (jink rig), Anderson 26 (lifting keeI), Golden Hind andRead More…
24Jul/21
The times they are a changing, dear Maurice
To escape the worst of the expected heatwave I thought I would visit what has quickly become my favourite anchorage, and do some relaxed mud listening. After a beat down the StourRead More…
02May/21
Keel bolt covers: “Sikaflex – Ugh!”
This will be my last post on Helene’s Boat Blog as owner. In fact although started before the sale it is being published after handover to Jim, the new owner. Due toRead More…
23Jul/20
A124 meets A1 – not for the first time?
A124 Helene was launched at last on Monday (with much thanks to Mike Dixon for driving miles to assist). It felt good to have water under the keel again and looking forwardRead More…
03Jul/17
A124 Helene gets new electrics panel
Helene had been professionally rewired before I bought her. There were one or two aspects I didn’t like, mainly that some of the cable routing was very visible, the sockets provided wereRead More…
A124 Helene gets her old boom back with slab reefing
Helene’s previous owner had invested in the hope of a return in silverware. Helene (3/4 rig, wooden mast) had been set up with new sails and gear for racing. This included leadingRead More…
25May/17
A124 Keels and their mechanism
The keels, keel brackets and clamping plates all looked in excellent condition but I wanted to get them out to check. I got the boat in the air and prepared to removeRead More…
25May/17
A124 Replacement Windows
The windows on Helene were very cloudy and needed replacing. There is a lot of excellent information in bulletins about how to replace them so I got stuck in. The only variationRead More…
30Apr/17
Lifting the boat from the trailer
I adapted a methodology for lifting the boat off the trailer that I have used for other boats. It involves a cross-beam with a jack at each end. In the past IRead More…
20May/15
A124 Engine Tidy Up
The engine was not in bad condition but needed a tidy and paint up. Some of the ancilliaries and pipework were a bit untidy. I removed the cockpit floor and the engineRead More…
15May/15
Blister Repairs
The join between the deck and blister was distressed at the forward end. Upon investigation it was clear that the laminated ‘quadrant’ in this corner was delaminating and there was evidence ofRead More…
10May/15
A124 Foredeck Repairs
The foredeck didn’t seem too bad away from the Blister (coachroof). However on investigation it transpired that the top veneer was breaking up in a few areas, particularly in the corners onRead More…
05May/15
A124 Helene Aft Deck Repairs
The decks appeared to need some paint. Sadly on investigation it turned out that areas were delaminating and that the stern deck on the starboard side had been badly repaired in theRead More…
30Apr/15
A124 Helene – Renovations
I bought Helene in 2007 expecting to do some light renovation of the decks and then get sailing. I got her home and started the work. And then I made my firstRead More…
12Dec/07
A124 For Sale in 2007 – Eastern Yachtbrokers SOLD
Extensively restored in 1999-2000 and then used on the East Coast. For sale in Essex having been stored for a couple of years. The ‘For Sale Details’ and a 2006 Survey canRead More…
30Jun/77
A124 Helen’s Folly 1970s Restoration
Helen’s Folly was restored from a garage of bits in the late 1970s