The History
With overcrowding of existing asylums in the 1850s and the Yarra Bend Asylum being considered unsuitable, the Government of the Colony of Victoria commissioned a report in 1854 to determine a site and potential designs for a new Asylum. Educated opinion at the time was that lunatic asylums should be built "on a healthy site, freely admitting light and air, and drainage …[on] a gentle eminence in a fertile and agreeable country". A report by the New South Wales' Inspector of Asylums, Frederick Norton Manning stated that "the site chosen is of primary importance. On it must depend the comfort, happiness and health of the inmates." (Quotes sourced from Wikipedia).
For these reasons the final site was chosen, across the Yarra River from Yarra Bend. The building that you see today has a number of interesting features, including the longest facade in the southern hemisphere. It was constructed as an E shaped "barracks" styled building, with a central administration block and a two storey ward wing either side for each sex. Each wing features a four storey tower with a mansard roof. Other interesting features include ha-ha walls, which appeared deceptively low from the outside, however, were excavated away on the inside, disallowing inmates to escape. The grounds were also well landscaped in the tradition of an English country park. Rooms with views towards the city were for paying customers only.
Despite possibly the best intentions, the Kew Asylum never lived up to the high expectations. Very few patients were ever cured and released back into the community. Furthermore, a Royal Commission was held in 1886 due to public outcry over the mistreatment of patients. Significant changes occurred through the 20th century in the way that society viewed mental illness as well methods of treatment. This resulted in a number of name changes, such as to Kew Mental Hospital then later Willsmere, as well as the reclassification of 'inmates' as being 'patients'. The focus in remaining years moved to short term hospitalisation. The hospital was eventually closed in 1988, with mental health services being relocated to regional hospitals.
In addition to the Asylum, you may also see the remains of the Willsmere Dairy in the park.
The Cache
After WP1, the track follows through a nice wooded area in front of the complex. It is sandy in places, so if you are doing it by bike, you may need to wheel it past these locations. The slight steep incline towards WP2 can be avoided if necessary, though requires a detour of up to several hundred metres (it's not that bad really though). As far as I can tell, the way points and final cache location are well obscured by trees from any of the apartments. Though you can still expect the usual muggies in the park and the odd muggie driving past along the driveway.
The grounds of the Asylum are now private property belonging to the apartment complex and I expect cachers will respect this. There is no need to enter this area for the cache. However, the grounds and a small interpretative museum are apparently occasionally opened to the public by the National Trust. If you are driving to the park, car parking is available at the end of Wills St, Kew. Pedestrian/bike access is also available from Yarra Boulevard. You may need a keen eye in order to answer some of the questions (though not intended to be overly difficult).
WP1 – S37 47.860 E145 01.359
You should be standing on a metal manhole cover with a great view towards the city.
ABC is the three-digit number on the manhole cover.
WP2 – S37 47.724 E145 01.251
You should be standing on the outer side of a fence. It doesn't matter where you stand, as long as it is on the track and you have a good view in. While here you can observe the typical ornamental trees that were planted for such establishments.
D is the total number of fences that can be seen in front of you if look straight across (i.e. 90 degrees from the fence you are at). If you are unsure about the answer, see below.
E the nearest fence is best described as (pick the number that corresponds):
brick = 0
stone = 1
wrought iron = 2
paling = 3
wire cyclone = 4
picket = 5
metal sheeting = 6
hedge = 7
barbed wire = 8
brush = 9
If you're not sure about the answer to D, here's an optional rehash to do on your way to WP3, you should see a brick drain. Lower down the hill there is a small bridge across it (just a sheet of steel). Count the row of bricks across the drain and subtract 12. I'd probably recommend that you do this to avoid wasting time later on.
WP3 - S37 47.692 E145 01.239
You should be standing near a water tank. Looking through the fence again, you will see a sign leading to the main entrance
F = the number of letters in the first word on the sign
GHIJ = the year that the institution was established, according to the sign
Now you just need to complete the maths and the cache can be found.
K = A + D
L = H - B - G
M = F - E
N = G + D
S37°EI.KLJ E145°JB.AMN
The cache is a 200ml sistema container, so small swaps are recommended. BYO pen. As usual, please ensure that you return the cache to the location where you found it before you leave. It should be well hidden and out of view to any muggles wandering by GZ. Please also be careful that the cache does not become unreachable when retrieving/re-hiding. Thanks. :-)
Some other nearby cache
I first had the idea of placing a cache here while doing the nearby Flying Fox 2 (GCTJED) two months ago, which is well worth doing. In the meantime Yarra Bend Lunatic Asylum (GC1PMNE) has also appeared, with a similar theme, though on the other side of the river.