This Sunday, Feb. 2, all eyes will turn to Gobbler's Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, as the world's most famous groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil, will emerge for his annual prognostication.
Over 40,000 people are expected for this year's festivities. Will Phil see his shadow, thus predicting six more weeks of winter?
"If you go by statistics and history, about 80% of the time it's, 'My shadow I see, so six more weeks of winter it will be,'" said Thomas A. Dunkel, the president of Punxsutawney Groundhog Club. "But you never know. In the last 10 years, we've had more 'no shadows' than we have had in any 10-year period of the Groundhog Club."
So, we won't know until Sunday around 7:25 a.m. if we should expect an early spring or more cold winter days.
This year, we can expect a family affair because this will be Phil's first Groundhog Day as a father. Last spring, Phil and his wife Phyllis welcomed pups Sunny and Shadow to their family. "When I talk to Phil with the cane, he's very proud of his two kids and they are super proud of dad," said Dunkel. "Not everybody has the world's most famous father."
Phil is allegedly 139 years old and has lived in Punxsutawney since the first Grover Cleveland administration. He gets his longevity by drinking a secret elixir of life each summer. Sadly, only Phil can drink this magical, life-giving brew, and Phyllis, Sunny, and Shadow will all face a mortal groundhog existence.
"There's only one Punxsutawney Phil," Dunkel said. "That's the problem with being an immortal. You outlive the family, I'm afraid. And that is one of the downsides of living forever."
If you want to see the whole family together this year, and Phil make his legendary prediction, the event in Punxsutawney is free and open to the public. Arriving early and dressing warmly is strongly advised.
