Punxsutawney Phil usually makes his weather call early in the morning. It typically happens after 7 a.m. Tradition says Phil seeing his shadow is a sign that the next six weeks will bring wintry weather. If Phil doesn't see his shadow, it means an early spring.

The day eventually evolved into what we know it today. In 1886, Groundhog Day was acknowledged for the first time in Punxsutawney by a local newspaper, Weathers Wags, according to the club. In 1887, the first official pilgrimage to see Phil on Gobbler’s Knob while he made his predictions were made.