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Another wild idea, because I can't find the elusive thing either - could it be THE S on the bottom row, as in "the sun", which was the hare's destination? Probably rubbish, I know, but if I stare at the grid much longer I will go mad as a March one.

I've been a tortoise rather than a hare with this one but I hope to win in the end. I've solved all the clues except one - 9d. I was thinking of waveys as American immigrants but ionacarr's posting suggest a grey is buried in the answer. I have WD?EY? and obviously there is a clash there. Thank you.

Hello Orson,

Yes, WAVEYS. Clash A/D

Thanks, pkd. The chase is on!

No, I wasn't suggesting that GREY was a possible answer, only an illustration of the kind of red herring we're up against, i.e. we keep on finding new ones, the only limit being our imaginations.

I did wonder (on Sunday) if the preamble's wording about a 'goal in the search area' might signify THES just as easily as HARE. The problem is that although the long-eared rodent was on a mission to the sun, that was only his ultimate goal, not the goal associated with the trail that we 'solvers' are required to follow.

But nothing can surprise me. It might be the answer.

Besides the word 'hare', the word 'arch' also forms part of 'search area' and it does appear in the grid as four consecutive letters in a straight line. Also, either its first or its last letter can form part of 'hare', albeit a right-angled version. However, it would then not be clear (to me, anyway) what to highlight, so it is hardly unambiguous as implied on the other site. Also, although arch is part of search area, I can't see how it really results from following the trail as suggested by the preamble. Just a thought to chuck into the mix.

Having reread the preamble carefully I cannot see how highlighting HARE there can be marked wrong. There is nothing that implies the goal is in the grid. Totally unfair as we have all said but to me still the most plausible. After all it is BURIED treasure we are looking for - I.e. buried in the preamble!

I'm still unconvinced. Poat's puzzles are always meticulously constructed, so if we are to dive into the uncharted territory outside the grid I'm sure that will be unambiguously signposted. A logical approach has led us as far as "CLOSE BY AMPTHILL", but beyond that we are guessing. So far there's been a theme of three, but that doesn't produce anything from that phrase. Nor can I see how any further use of the clues as acrostics gives anything. But I'm sure we are missing something.

Re highlighting the preamble - this would go against the marker's annual request in the stats that solutions are submitted cut close around the grid and address form; that would exclude the preamble from the submission...

I entirely agree -- unless there were a totally unambiguous instruction -- and I don't believe that the only occurrence of HARE as an unbroken straight line sequence is in SEARCHAREA is in the preamble is sufficiently convincing. Can we come up with a better interpretation of letters in a straight line? I see YOU and VEE in the grid.