The REVEAL!
Well this puzzle got off to a rocky start. I was so proud of myself that I was able to construct a puzzle different than my usual and one that would be fairly simple to get. I also spent a lot of time "cleaning up" the fill so that it was more "Cap'n Rick-like" where all the words are usual ones and Natick’s dare not reside.
Apparently that was my big mistake. As has happened before (but in a more disastrous manner) my "housekeeping” eliminated one of the puzzle mechanism letters so that the "correct" path would read JACKANDJILLHILT - what???
Luckily someone pointed it out quickly and I was able to fix it expeditiously, but not without a good deal of embarrassment.
At any rate, the idea was that clues 40A (in a roundabout manner) and 72A (much more directly) would drive you to look at the angles from bottom to top. Where to start, well J's are rather uncommon in a crossword, particularly to end an entry, so might as well start there. What do you know, going Southwest to Northeast we have JACK AND JILL HILL, and certainly those two were "well" intentioned with the hill as their ultimate goal.
I actually got a lot of solvers, but at least 5 of you submitted what WASN'T there, JACK AND JILL WENT UP THE HILL. I can see that, it is certainly JACK and JILL and they are rising up the named HILL. Muggles are, of course, far too thorough because I wanted just what was written. However, as some said to me, it is hard when you see that because your mind wants to complete it. I offered credit for those answers because I can see why that was chosen. If that is what you entered and did NOT get credit then please PM me.
Tomorrow's puzzle is another different, but relatively easy, one. Then you are treated to the Australian challenger, the Master of the Moat, the Thunder from Down Under for a few weeks because I am traveling. When I am back I have a couple of "different" puzzles that I am going to run, and at some point one that is a Puma/Lion my testers have told me. So, enjoy the Down Under musings and I'll see you again on the 25th of October (a day before my birthday - all gifts of luxury autos, expensive vacations and gold bars will be gladly accepted but, fair warning, I have no influence or favors to offer. If you do not believe me ask my wife)