Beyond Punxsutawney, Groundhog Day taking a pandemic hit across the region
Updated Feb 01, 2021;
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As even the mighty Punxsutawney Groundhog Club, keeper of Pennsylvania’s most famous groundhog, prepares for a virtual Groundhog Day on Tuesday, February 2, events across the region are taking various approaches to their own celebrations in a time of pandemic and social distancing.
The Union Kanaal Grundsau Lodsch No. 17 (Groundhog Lodge Number 17 on the Union Canal) has canceled its festivities along the banks of the Tulpehocken Creek in Myerstown.
Since 1981 members of the lodge have given Uni the groundhog a raft ride down the creek to a seasonal forecast celebration in English and Pennsylvania Dutch.
In 2021, Octoraro Orphie will not be predicting whether spring will come early.
Quarryville s yearly Groundhog Day celebration, held at the Slumbering Groundhog Lodge, has been canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to a press release from the organization. While we are disappointed that we wonât be gathering along the banks of the Octorara Creek this year, we look forward to welcoming our members and valued guests to the 114th observance in February of 2022,â said Rick Rankin, Chairman of the Board of Hibernating Governors of the Slumbering Groundhog Lodge of Quarryville in a press release.
William Forrey, a spokesperson for the Lodge, noted that the event held every Feb. 2 typically brings in several hundred spectators, the safety of whom could not be guaranteed.