There will be six more weeks of winter, Punxsutawney Phil predicted as he emerged from his burrow on a snowy Tuesday morning to perform his Groundhog Day duties.
Members of Phil鈥檚 鈥渋nner circle鈥� woke up the furry critter at 7:25 a.m. at Gobbler鈥檚 Knob in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, to see whether he would see his shadow or not.
Shortly after this year鈥檚 prediction was revealed, one of the members of the inner circle shared a message he said Phil had told him earlier in the day: 鈥淎fter winter, you鈥檙e looking forward to one of the most beautiful and brightest springs you鈥檝e ever seen.鈥�
Another member of the 鈥渋nner circle鈥� noted the uniqueness of the past year.
鈥淧eople have been referencing Groundhog Day. It has felt like at times we鈥檙e all living the same day over and over again,鈥� one of the members said. 鈥淕roundhog Day also shows us that the monotony ends. The cycle will be broken.鈥�
鈥淭oday actually is Groundhog Day, there鈥檚 only one,鈥� he added. 鈥淭here is quite literally a new day coming over the horizon.鈥�
The spectacle that is Groundhog Day still went on, but because of the coronavirus pandemic, revelers weren鈥檛 able to see Phil and celebrate in person: This year, it was all virtual and included cardboard cutouts to represent spectators.
, which had more than 15,000 viewers at one point, played footage from previous Groundhog Day鈥檚 ahead of the big reveal.
Then of course, the prognosticator of prognosticators emerged at dawn. The lore goes that if he sees his shadow as he did this year, there will be six more weeks of winter. If he doesn鈥檛, spring comes early.
Wearing top hats, members of the club summoned Phil from a new tree stump.
鈥淵ou look beautiful,鈥� club president Jeff Lundy told Phil, who directed members to one of two scrolls.
A club member announced, 鈥淲e have all passed through the darkness of night, but now see hope in morning鈥檚 bright light. But now when I turn to see, there鈥檚 a perfect shadow cast of me.鈥�
The livestream from Gobbler鈥檚 Knob, a tiny hill just outside Punxsutawney about 65 miles (105 kilometers) northeast of Pittsburgh, is made possible by the Pennsylvania Tourism Office鈥檚 Holi-stay PA. The event there 鈥� always Feb. 2 鈥� dates back to 1887.
Phil this year, like many years in the past, gave his forecast during a major snowstorm that .
The annual event has its origin in a German legend about a furry rodent. Records dating to the late 1800s show Phil has predicted longer winters more than 100 times. The 鈥� however, Phil didn鈥檛 say anything about a pandemic.
In its 135-year history, Phil has predicted winter 106 times and spring 20 times, the club said. Ten years were lost because no records were kept.
Punxsutawney Phil may be the most famous groundhog seer but he鈥檚 certainly not the only one. There are two other high-profile 鈥渋mposters,鈥� as the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club calls them, in the region.
Staten Island Chuck will be asked for his prophesy Tuesday around 8 a.m. at the Staten Island Zoo in New York. That event will be streamed on Facebook since the zoo is closed.
Also without fanfare, Chuckles, Connecticut鈥檚 official state groundhog, will make a prediction from home: the Lutz Children鈥檚 Museum in Manchester. That will also be streamed on Facebook. Chuckles X and it remains to be seen whether an anointed Chuckles XI will emerge Tuesday.