This paper analyses results from a three dimensional discrete element method simulation of the cone penetration test in a "Virtual Calibration Chamber" (VCC). The deformation patterns in the soil adjacent to the cone during penetration are considered. While some insight can certainly be achieved by visualization of the discrete particle displacements, typically in geomechanics our interpretations of material response are in terms of (continuum) strains. Here a local, non-linear, wavelet based approach is used to calculate the strain distribution within the VCC. This method was found to represent effectively strain fields as penetration proceeds. The axial symmetry of the system at the macro level is c1early evidenced by the strain plots.