HOPE — For the first time, the annual Groundhog Day ceremony in the Hope Town Square will be held on a weekend.
When it comes to furry prognosticators, the town’s groundhog — Grubby — has achieved an impressive reputation for accuracy.
Spectators who want to take the folklore seriously should hope that overcast skies and mild temperatures prevail when the 5-year-old woodchuck makes her annual appearance in the northeast Bartholomew County town at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 2. The Groundhog Day ceremony will be at the northeast corner of the Hope Town Square.
When the woodchuck, who resides at UTOPIA Wildlife Rehabilitators, emerged last year before a crowd of more than 70 spectators, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky to prevent Grubby from seeing her shadow.
According to American folklore, a shadow means six more weeks of cold winter weather. Subsequent weeks proved Grubby was right, as frequent cold spells continued through early May.
Her prediction a year earlier was also on target. The cloudy skies above Hope on Feb. 2, 2017, allowed one of Grubby’s Groupies, David Webster, to make the pronouncement everyone wanted to hear.
”No shadow she sees. The groundhog has spoken. The winter’s long spell will shortly be broken,” proclaimed Webster. Within two weeks, temperatures in south central Indiana were climbing into the 50s with regular frequency and, by the end of February, even occasionally into the 60s.
The outdoor temperature during the ceremony tends to be quite cold (11 degrees last year), so organizers strive to keep the ceremony short. Once Grubby’s prediction is made, many Hope residents head to nearby Willow Leaves restaurant for light refreshments and hot drinks.
Since it will be the weekend, the Hope Volunteer Fire Department will provide a pancake breakfast on Groundhog Day from 8:30 until 11 a.m. at the station house at 103 Aiken St., Hope.
Besides pancakes, the breakfast will also include eggs, fried biscuits with apple butter, and beverages, fire chief Chad Emmitt said. A free-will offering will be taken during the breakfast.
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What: Groundhog Day ceremony with Grubby
When: 8:30 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 2.
Where: The bandstand on the northeast corner of the Hope Town Square
Post-ceremony warmups: Light refreshments at Willow Leaves restaurant, 326 Jackson St. after the ceremony. A full breakfast will be available at the Hope Volunteer Fire Department, at the corner of Aiken and South streets, that morning from 8:30 to 11 a.m.
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