Punxsutawney Phil Predicts Longer Winter

Punxsutawney Phil on Groundhog Day in 2018. Photo: Chris Flook, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

GOBBLER’S KNOB, Penn.— Celebrity groundhog Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow this morning, which means six more weeks of winter (for those who trust rodents for weather forecasting). The public was not permitted to cheer Phil on at the ceremony due to Covid-19 restrictions; the prediction occurred virtually (video below).

The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club posted a poem to its website to commemorate the day. An excerpt:

“It is a beautiful morning this I can see,
With all my fans viewing virtually.
With my faithful followers being safe and secure,
Our tradition of Groundhog Day must endure.
We all have passed through the darkness of night,
But now see hope of morning’s bright light.
When I turn to see, there is a perfect shadow cast of me.
Six more weeks of winter there will be!”

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The Powder Buoy, a go-to source for local weather, known most for info on upcoming powder days, weighed in on Groundhog Day in an Instagram post, offering snow news for the Wasatch: