Punxsutawney Phil predicts 6 more weeks of winter after seeing shadow

The largest Groundhog Day crowd to date greeted the news from Punxsutawney Phil with a chorus of boos Sunday.

The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club declared the famous rodent saw a shadow at sunrise and predicted six more weeks of winter. The prediction at 7:25 a.m. came as thousands who gathered at Gobbler’s Knob in Punxsutawney cheered for the prognostication. Last year, Phil did not see his shadow and predicted an early spring.

“There’s a shadow up here,” Phil’s handler read from a scroll after the groundhog emerged from his burrow. “Get ready for six more weeks of winter this year.”

Verdict is in: SIX more weeks of winter… yikes, Phil ????

Crowd boo’d after the prognostication @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/sb1kksc1g2

— Megan Swift (@mgswift7) February 2, 2025

Punxsutawney Phil emerges from his burrow and is shown to the crowd Lion King-style.

Loud cheers erupt @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/1sYRTCEbGI

— Megan Swift (@mgswift7) February 2, 2025

Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow and predicts six more weeks of winter! #GroundhogDay pic.twitter.com/eevOY4XuIk

— The Weather Channel (@weatherchannel) February 2, 2025

Gov. Josh Shapiro was on the grounds along with visitors from as far away as Atlanta and as near as Pittsburgh drawn by the lore of the day — and inspired by the classic 1993 movie “Groundhog Day” starring Bill Murray and Andie MacDowell.

LIVE from Gobbler’s Knob: Views of the huge crowd here to watch Punxsutawney Phil’s prognostication…

Compared to when I covered last year, there’s definitely more people @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/BzhmwcbWX0

— Megan Swift (@mgswift7) February 2, 2025

Holly Reese and her husband, Ray, were among the revelers who made the trek to Gobbler’s Knob on Sunday morning, but they had been hoping for an early spring.

“I really love Groundhog Day,” said Holly Reese, 54, of Atlanta. “The year we got married, the movie came out.”

Phil has predicted a longer winter far more often than an early spring, and one effort to track his accuracy concluded he was right less than half the time.

The Inner Circle and @GovernorShapiro walk down to the stage at Gobbler’s Knob — just minutes before the official prognostication @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/hhf6hbAG6E

— Megan Swift (@mgswift7) February 2, 2025

Holly and Ray Reese have watched Phil’s famed prognostication every year online, they said, and this year was the first time they made the trip from Georgia. They became members of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club and got in on Friday for meet-and-greets with The Inner Circle and Phil himself.

“We’re empty nesters, so it seemed like a good thing to do,” she said. “We’re just hitting bucket list things.”

Ray Reese, 55, said his wife recently visited her 50th state, and the couple has been planning other fun outings together. He advised would-be Groundhog Day attendees to arrive early because of how difficult it is to park.

They left their Indiana hotel at 4 a.m. and arrived at the Walmart bus loading station at around 5 a.m. Holly Reese said she thinks the timing was a little late, however.

Here are close-ups of two of the many school buses used to transport revelers to and from Gobbler’s Knob this morning @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/46bm37wST9

— Megan Swift (@mgswift7) February 2, 2025

“We live in Georgia, so we like it warm,” Holly Reese said of the frigid temperatures before the sun rose Sunday morning.

Despite the weather, she said, she noticed a lot of high energy in the bus lines.

“People are very happy — they’re very excited,” Holly Reese said.

Jude Damon traveled from Oak Ridge, N.C., to witness Punxsutawney Phil’s prognostication for the first time.

“Talking animals have been part of human folklore forever,” he said. “That’s what brought me here.”

Damon, 55, said he loved the atmosphere at Gobbler’s Knob, and he understands why people make it a yearly excursion.

“I would say that it is a groupie thing — that people would meet people here,” he said of the festivities.

Without booking a hotel room, Damon said he drove the eight hours on Saturday to get to town. He came by himself because none of his friends were able to drop everything and join him.

“I was expecting Punxsutawney to be just like the movie,” he said, even though he was aware it wasn’t filmed in Pennsylvania. “I really, truly thought that I could find a bed and breakfast.”

Thankfully, Damon said, he was able to secure a room about 30 minutes away. As an artist, he said he will take inspiration and subject matter from Phil’s prognostication for future projects.

“This is the best holiday of all,” he said. “It’s the most not appreciated — the most American.”

For Aileigh Corbett, Groundhog Day’s festivities are familiar. It was her second year in a row traveling to Gobbler’s Knob from Pittsburgh.

“We came out last year and had a wonderful time,” she said. “Honestly, it’s a very quirky festival. People are here to enjoy themselves.”

The fact that Groundhog Day isn’t that serious is what makes it fun, said Corbett, 20, who is a student at Carnegie Mellon University. People can celebrate and be silly, she said.

“It’s a groundhog,” Corbett said. “It’s a cute little animal — you can’t beat that.”

She and her friends drove up from Pittsburgh starting around 3:30 a.m. Sunday, and their journey was a lot calmer than last year’s, when her car broke down and they had to hitchhike the rest of the way.

“I think part of the draw for college students is to leave the academic bubble and do something that’s more community-based,” Corbett said. “Something that’s not at all related.”

She said she saw more college-age students last year at Gobbler’s Knob compared to this year.

Corbett also noted the cold weather — which was worse than last year’s.

“It’s cold, but it kind of forces you to have fun,” she said.