Drews Pond is a collection of ponds and streams in the base of a valley on the southern edge of Devizes about a third of a mile from my parents' house. I spent a lot of my childhood exploring and having fun in the woods and slopes down there, and on an Easter visit back to my parents' house, I thought I'd place a cache down here.
I suggest you park at N51° 20.464' W1° 59.514'. This is about 1/2 a mile from the cache site, and about a 0.7 mile walk through Drews Pond. Please be sensible when parking - it's not that busy around here, but please don't block anything. And don't go any further south down the lane - there's no parking down there, and vehicular access is for residents only!
On your way down the lane towards the cache, why not visit the site of what is reputed to be the oldest pub in Devizes, at N51° 20.184 W1° 59.518'. It's said that drovers heading towards Devizes Market used to stop here for a drink way back in the 1200s.
The doorway at N51° 20.227' W1° 59.507' leads through to what used to be Roundway Hospital's burial ground. It's since been converted to Million Tree Wood and a glade to attract butterflies. Roundway Mental Hospital no longer operates, and has been turned into residential flats.
Remember to take some bread to feed the ducks from the path at N51° 20.172' W1° 59.530'. There are normally quite a few species of bird here, and as soon as you start throwing bread, they'll come flocking over!
At the sign at N51° 20.162' W1° 59.544' you will find information about the pond and the woods
Down at the stream (N51° 20.156' W1° 59.559') is where my friends and I used to build dams to try to flood the path. We never suceeded in drying up Drews Pond though, as it's fed by seven separate springs in the valley!
The cache site is then up the other side of the valley.
From the eastbound footpath a little south of the cache site, great views across Devizes can be afforded, including seeing Roundway Hill to the NNW and Devizes White Horse to the north. It can get quite exposed up there on the fields, so wrap up if it's blowly, or cover up if it's sunny!
The footpath up to the cache site can get quite overgrown with nettles during the summer, so take long sleeves or a big stick. And the cache site itself can get quite nettly in the summer, hence the 2.5-star difficulty for terrain (that combined with the hill climbs).
On the way back home, from the footpath at N51° 20.004 W1° 59.507, looking north, it's just possible to see my parents' house in Woodland Way. Wave to them!
The cache itself is now a clip-lid tub. It initially contained:
- Logbook, pencils, sharpener
- a skipping rope
- Some balloons
- A packet of plasticine
Once the skipping rope is gone there'll be a lot more space for goodies!!
Happy caching!