Groundhog Day 2026: Punxsutawney Phil’s winter forecast prediction

Groundhog Day 2026 Prediction!

Punxsutawney Phil has delivered his 2026 winter forecast calling for six more weeks of winter!

PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. - Punxsutawney Phil has delivered his 2026 forecast signaling six more weeks of winter!

What we know:

His handlers reported that Phil spotted his shadow outside his tree stump on Gobbler’s Knob, prompting the prediction of six additional weeks of cold weather.

The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club announced the forecast Monday in rural Pennsylvania.

If Phil is said to see his shadow when he emerges from his stump, that’s taken as a prediction of six more weeks of winter. If he doesn’t, tradition holds that an early spring is on the way.

In 2025, Phil called for six more weeks of winter, his most common prediction and hardly a surprise for early February.

The backstory:

Phil isn’t the only creature being consulted for long‑range weather wisdom on Monday. 

Groundhog Day events are unfolding across the U.S., Canada and beyond. In Washington, D.C., Potomac Phil, the region's unofficial, stuffed groundhog, offers his annual read on the weather and the city’s political gridlock.

Groundhog Day lands halfway between the winter solstice, the shortest, darkest day of the year, and the spring equinox. The tradition traces back to European agricultural customs, though its scientific accuracy remains uncertain at best.