Punxsutawney Phil fanatics know how to party
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A crowd of over 40,000 waits for the weather report before Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow predicting 6 more weeks of winter during the 2025 Groundhog Day festivities in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Photo: Jeff Swensen/Getty Images
Punxsutawney Phil may get skewered for his iffy weather predictions, but his parties don't miss.
Driving the news: More than 40,000 visitors gathered at Gobbler's Knob on Sunday to celebrate western Pennsylvania's prophetic groundhog — and I was one of them.
- I left Pittsburgh for Punxsutawney on a frigid Saturday night to mingle with a legion of fellow Phil fanatics and watch as he declared six more weeks of winter.
Zoom in: The legendary woodchuck ascends from his stump around 7:30am on Groundhog Day to give his forecast, but true believers poured into Gobbler's Knob at 3am when it opens. Some lined up for shuttles as early as 9pm the night before.
- Those who didn't want to wait hours for a shuttle to Gobbler's Knob — located two miles uphill from Punxsutawney — made the trek on foot through residential neighborhoods brimming with Phil inflatables and patient homeowners.
- Hotels in the area booked up six months to a year in advance, and the closest I could find last minute was 40 miles southwest of Punxsutawney.
- The festival includes fireworks, live music, costumes and rowdy chants of "Phil! Phil! Phil!" The crowd is diverse, ranging from tipsy college students to international visitors.
What they're saying: Alex Kearney and his girlfriend, Amy Owen, drove 15 hours from Kansas and waited nearly three hours for a shuttle, just to catch a glimpse of Phil. "We don't regret a minute of it," said Kearney, proudly wearing a groundhog onesie and a crown. "He's worth so much more."
- "We don't even have a hotel," Owen added. "We slept in our car. It was on a Sunday so it just made sense to come this year."
- Other travelers pulled all-nighters, noting they hadn't slept in 24 hours by the time Phil saw his shadow Sunday morning.
Zoom out: The festival spans several days starting with the Groundhog Ball, a formal soirée where tourists can rub elbows with the rodent's Inner Circle.
- The event exploded in popularity after the 1993 premiere of the Bill Murray blockbuster "Groundhog Day," with tens of thousands of people traveling to the borough of about 5,600 permanent residents each year.
The intrigue: Punxsutawney Groundhog Club members insist there has only been one Phil since the tradition began nearly 140 years ago — at least 15 times the typical lifespan of a groundhog raised in captivity.
- His supposed longevity comes from an "elixir of life" that's apparently not shared with his wife, Phyllis, or their two pups.
Fun facts: Phil has some political clout — his handlers say he's met former presidents Reagan and Carter, and three sitting Pennsylvania governors have attended the annual Groundhog Day ceremony.
- During the Prohibition era, he reportedly threatened to impose more than a year of winter on the community if he wasn't permitted a drink — implying he not only predicts the weather, but controls it.
The bottom line: He's often imitated, but a few hours with his devoted fans proves Phil is still top hog.
