HOPE – In her first starring role on a groundhog’s biggest day of the year, understudy Hope gave it to us straight — six more weeks of winter.
Stepping in for the usual star, Grubby, who has made the prediction for years, there was no question that Monday morning’s bright sunshine resulted in a shadow, which legend has it means more winter, not an early spring.
Hope’s annual Groundhog Day festival has been a tradition since 2015. Last year, the event drew more than 160 spectators and two Indianapolis television stations. However, this year’s festival, like many other events, had to make changes due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This year’s event was off-limits to the general public in accordance with state regulations. Only some officials (playfully nicknamed “Groundhog Groupies”) and wildlife volunteers were at the ceremony, which took place at the UTOPIA Wildlife Rehabilitators facility near Newbern.
“I always love to do it in Hope, of course, but it went fine,” UTOPIA director Kathy Hershey said. “It went great. It was certainly convenient for me and the groundhog.”
The event was initially supposed to be livestreamed on social media on Tuesday morning, but some problems with cell service threw a wrench into that plan. A video of the ceremony was later posted on UTOPIA’s Facebook page.
The festival was also marked by the absence of two notable attendees who have been part of the tradition every year since its inception. One was the late Charles “Chuck” Baker, who died last fall. During this year’s ceremony, Susan Thayer Fye honored the historic restoration expert and “self-proclaimed ‘crotchety curmudgeon,’ ” who enjoyed local historical events and always attended the festival in costume.
“The Hope area lost a large memory bank of local stories, legends and priceless history when Chuck left us,” she said. “Chuck, we love you, and we miss you. And my good friend, this Groundhog Day is dedicated to you.”
The other absent attendee was the event’s traditional star, Grubby, who had to call in sick on Tuesday. Hershey said previously that Grubby had to sit out of the usual festivities because she’s suffering from a dental disease called odontoma, which makes certain mammals feel and act as if they have a respiratory infection.
“We’ve got to make some decisions about Grubby,” Hershey said. “Grubby’s got some really bad tooth problems. … She’s not eating well.”
Grubby is currently at the facility’s clinic, and they’re trying to make a decision about what to do next. Hershey estimated that the average lifespan of a groundhog in captivity is six to eight years, and Grubby is currently 6 years old. Groundhogs in captivity could live up to 14 years, according to some estimates.
Grubby and Hope are considered non-releasable because they wouldn’t have protection from potential predators, which Hershey said is not a healthy thing for a wild woodchuck.
In light of Grubby’s health concerns, Hope, who was born last spring, took a turn in the spotlight and ended up seeing her shadow.
“She was a totally unknown quantity,” Hershey said. “So we weren’t sure how that was going to go, but she did great. We’ve been practicing.”
While groundhogs may not be very accurate weather forecasters, the annual event, held in conjunction with Main Street of Hope, provides a way to “brighten up the winter,” Hershey said.
Punxsutawney Phil, the most famous Groundhog’s Day prognosticator, also saw his shadow on Tuesday, predicting another six weeks of winter at Gobbler’s Knob in Pennsylvania.
The question, of course, remains — will both Hope and Punxsutawney Phil’s predictions prove prophetic?
Right now, AccuWeather’s forecast for the town of Hope shows highs mostly in the 30s for the rest of this week. On Sunday, temperatures could get as low as 6 degrees. After a brief cold front on Sunday and Monday — with forecasted highs of 16°F and 20°F, respectively — highs should mostly return to the 30s.
Beginning in mid-February, highs will generally be in the upper 30s to low 40s. Later in the month, daily highs will mostly be in the 40s — and stay there for a few more weeks until daily highs start reaching into the 50s on or about the second week of March. But don’t expect the temperature to rise into the 60s until late in March.
As far as precipitation goes, some snow is forecast for mid- to late-February, but the predicted amounts tend to be less than an inch. There is also some snow and freezing rain forecast for March.
Hershey said that she hopes things will improve after the upcoming cold snap.
“I think spring will definitely come,” she said. “How fast, I don’t know.”
— Reporter Mark Webber contributed to this story.
