The given reference for this multi-cache is referred to as Waypoint 1 which is at:
N51° 19.713 W000° 47.977
Car parking is available just 170m from Waypoint 1 at N51° 19.662 W000° 47.854.
This is one of a number of multi-caches based on Toby Dog’s favourite walking places in around Yateley. Each takes up to around 45 minutes depending on how many times Toby stops for a sniff or to play with his puppy-dog pals. All are listed in my Toby Dog’s Walks bookmark
Like Wyndhams Pool, Strood Pool is on Yateley Common Country Park, an extensive heathland complex with areas of open heather, gorse, birch and oak woodland. The site is covered by a good network of paths and trails with countless potential cache locations.
At a meeting held in December 2000 members of the Yateley Common Management Committee “supported a proposal that Strouds Pond be known by its historical name of Strood Pool, and that signs be restyled as they were replaced.” So despite the fact that most locals still refer to Strouds Pond it seems appropriate to refer to this cache by its “historical name” - Strood Pool.
Whatever we call it this is a popular pond dipping location for local school groups.
Finding this small multi-cache will take you around Strood Pool and then across the common and around a smaller (unnamed I think) pool for a 45 minute circular walk. Alternatively, the distance and bearing from each waypoint to the next is given if you’d rather take a shorter walk from the first waypoint directly to the cache. If you do follow the walk please keep to the paths. Some of the paths can be very muddy at times so good walking footwear may be essential.
You should find Waypoint 1 just by a house that looks across the green to the pond.
You will need to look up if you’re less than six feet tall to find the year that a small rectangular metallic “COBRA” plate was attached to the object. By noting the year on the plate as ABCD and by working out EF and G where E=A+5, F=A+3 and G=A+1 you can now plot Waypoint 2 by substituting the correct numbers for the letters in the following:
N 51° AB.EDG W000° F(B-A).(G+1)DF
If you prefer to work out the plot Waypoint 2 is 431.59 metres from Waypoint 1 on a bearing of 241.54 degrees.
At Waypoint 2 you will find a short Byway marker post. There are “HJ” blue arrows on the post but you will need to look all around to make sure that you see them all. By working out K, L and M where K=(B-H), L=(B-4) and M=(H+J) you can now plot Waypoint 3 by substituting the correct number for the appropriate letter in the following:
N 51° AB.EDE W000° FK.LML
If you prefer to work out the plot Waypoint 3 is 269.4 metres from Waypoint 2 on a bearing of 271.73 degrees.
Waypoint 3 is another Byway marker post with a different number of blue arrows. This one has “N” arrows on each one of 3 of its 4 faces. By working out P and Q where P=(L-N) and Q=(C-N) you can now plot Waypoint 4 by substituting the correct number for the appropriate letter in the following:
N51° AB.QNC W000° FK.NQB
If you prefer to work out the plot Waypoint 4 is 374.41 metres from Waypoint 3 on a bearing of 52.75 degrees.
Waypoint 4 is an identical object to Waypoint 1. Again you will need to look up unless you’re quite tall. You will see two circular metallic plates each of which has a number. Those numbers are “R” and “S”. By working out T and V where T=(J+S) and V=(K-R) you can now plot Waypoint 5 - the cache location - by substituting the correct number for the appropriate letter in the following:
N51° AB.QEB W000° TV.BQF
If you prefer to work out the plot Waypoint 5 - the cache location - is 362.14 metres from Waypoint 4 on a bearing of 77.97 degrees.
The cache was replaced on 24 July 2016 and is now a 5ml screw top container that is just big enough to hold the log and a very short pencil.
Please replace the cache exactly where you find it as the area is very popular with very curious muggle pups!.