Hanging out with Harleysville Hank and everything else to know about Groundhog Day 2024

While the nation looks to Punxatawny Phil on Friday for his forecast, an arguably smaller, but eager, crowd will get their weather prediction from a more local source.

Meet Harleysville Hank, the pride of Montgomery County, and maybe the second, well perhaps, the third most famous groundhog in Pennsylvania (if you count the PA Lottery's Gus).

And Hank is his own rodent. Last year, he broke ranks with his more famous friend Punxatawny Phil in their forecasting. While Phil saw his shadow and called for six more weeks of winter, hometown Hank signaled to his handlers that it would be an early spring.

We like the way Hank thinks.

In short, if a groundhog emerges from its burrow on Friday and sees its shadow, it will retreat to its den and winter will go on for six more weeks. If it does not see its shadow, spring will arrive early.

No matter who you get your Groundhog Day predictions from, here's what you need to know before Friday's festivities and fanfare:

Hanging out with Harleysville Hank on Groundhog Day

Anyone wanting to participate in Groundhog Day events will have to get a predawn start.

Groundhog Day fans can begin to gather at 6:45 a.m. on Friday, Feb. 2 for the Harleysville Hank Groundhog Day Extravaganza. It's the tenth year of the celebration and includes songs, a reading, warm drinks and more early morning fun at the Mennonite Heritage Center at 565 Yoder Road in Harleysville.

The Harleysville Order of the Grundsow bring the event to the community.

Harleysville Hank took a mini-tour of Pennsylvania to hype up Friday's shadow reveal, stopping by local seats of government and organizations along the way:

"Hank stopped by Souderton-Telford Rotary to promote his Extravaganza next week," read the post on Facebook. "Everyone was glad to see him."

Move over, Punxsutawney Phil: Look out, Punxsutawney Phil! Pocono Wildlife houses 2 groundhogs who will look for shadows

Punxsutawney Groundhog Club turns Groundhog Day into a two-day celebration

The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club and the 15-member crew whose task it is to protect and perpetuate the legend of Punxsutawney Phil decided that it couldn't confine Groundhog Day to only Friday.

The club is kicking things off on Thursday, Feb. 1 with the Gobbler’s Knob Got Talent show. The talent show begins at 1 p.m. at the groundhog club's community center, 1548 Woodland Ave. in Punxsutawney, and is free and open to the public.

According to the groundhog club's website, two finalists will be chosen to perform at Gobbler’s Knob on Groundhog Day morning to be voted on at the Celebration. The winner will be awarded $500.

That leads to the Groundhog Day Celebration, which will open at 3 a.m. Friday. The celebration is also free.

Similar to Harleysville Hank, Punxsutawney Phil also went on tour to peak interest in his forthcoming appearance:

Will the weather impact Groundhog Day?

While so much of Groundhog Day depends on the furry and fluffy's creature seeing its own shadow, Mother Nature may very well have the last say.

According to the National Weather Service in Mount Holly, it will be cloudy overnight Thursday heading into Friday.

Temperatures overnight on Thursday will be around 36 degrees.

The chances of either Harleysville Hank or Punxsutawney Phil seeing their shadows Friday morning are literally 50-50.

In its forecast, the weather service expects a party sunny day on Friday, with temperatures around 45 degrees.

Why does a groundhog predict the weather?

Looking to a groundhog to predict the weather has its roots in European lore, where "...a badger or sacred bear..." prognosticates the weather instead of a whistlepig.

Groundhog Day also has been linked to the Christian holiday of Candlemas and the Pagan Imbolc, marked on Feb. 1 with its own weather prediction, according to NOAA.

More on Groundhog's Day 2024: Groundhog Day: What does a groundhog have to do with the weather forecast?

Candlemas is the midpoint between the Winter Solstice and Spring Equinox, and early Christians believed that a sunny Candlemas meant 40 more days of cold and snow.

German immigrants in Pennsylvania brought Candlemas traditions with them, but instead of using a badger as their weather prognosticator, a groundhog was chosen.

Who started Groundhog Day?

The earliest tradition of Groundhog Day was observed in 1886, according to The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club.

A clipping from newspapers.com Indiana's Kokomo Tribune notes the celebration was the brainchild of Punxsutawney Spirit newspaper editor Clymer Freas. He noticed "...a group of the town's early German settlers took to picnicking at Gobbler's Knob on a keg of beer and some of the abundant groundhog meat," the article reads. When word of this reached Freas, "...he christened the club the Groundhog Club," the Jan. 31, 1952 edition reads.

This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Groundhog Day's Punxatawny Phil, Harleysville Hank ready to forecast