Punxsutawney

Phil predicts more winter for 2023

Pennsylvania’s very own world-famous groundhog Punxsutawney Phil predicted more weeks of winter after seeing his shadow Feb. 2 at Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney.

This marks the 108th time Phil has not seen his shadow, calling for a few more weeks of winter, during the 137-year-old tradition.

Celebrated by locals and visitors alike, the annual event dates back to 1887 when a group of groundhog hunters first dubbed themselves “The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club” and proclaimed Punxsutawney Phil to be the one-and-only weather prognosticating groundhog. Since then, thousands of people gather each Feb. 2 to watch the groundhog emerge.

According to the holiday folklore, if the groundhog sees his shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter weather. Should he not see his shadow, Phil promises an early spring.

This year more than 20,000 visitors had the opportunity to celebrate on site with live musical entertainment, hot beverages and tasty snacks for all to enjoy.

“Every Feb. 2 it’s amazing to see the faithful followers of Punxsutawney Phil who gather early in the morning at Gobbler’s Knob. You can feel the excitement and energy from the crowd. Through our online ticket sales, we can now see where our guests are coming from. We sent ticket packets to 46 different states across the U.S. and over 30 different countries around the world,” Thomas A. Dunkel, president of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club, said. “That’s what makes talking to our bucket list visitors so much fun and interesting.”