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Punxs'y Points:
Population: 6740
Elevation: 1439' abv sea lvl
Latitude: 40.50
Longitude: 78.59
Claim to Fame:
Weather Capital of the World
Avg. Temperature:
Summer: 81.6F
Winter: 33.2F
Yearly: 55.8F
Days above 85F: 22
Days below 33F: 32
Avg. Precipitation:
Fall: 10.1"
Winter: 9.2"
Spring: 11.9"
Summer: 12.9
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Because we all know why you're really buying a Cadillac... |
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A Look Back...
Punxsutawney Phil and his ancestors have been predicting the weather since 1887. Here are
his results:
1887 
1888
1889 
1890 
1891
1892
1893
1894
1895
1896
1897
1898
1899
1900
1901
1902
1903
1904
1905
1906
1907
1908
1909
1910
1911
1912
1913
1914
1915
1916
1917
1918
1919
1920
1921
1922
1923
1924
1925
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1926
1927
1928
1929
1930
1931
1932
1933
1934
1935
1936
1937
1938
1939
1940
1941
1942
1943
1944
1945
1946
1947
1948
1949
1950
1951
1952
1953
1954
1955
1956
1957
1958
1959
1960
1961
1962
1963
1964
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1965
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
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 saw his shadow.
didn't see his shadow.
not recorded. |
Punxsutawney Phil's Accuracy Rate: 39%
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The Shadow Knows...
Oct 8 -
Most of the time, we have those kinds of days where we get ourselves all geared up for a city
or an attraction, only to arrive and have reality lay the smack down on us. Like the day we
hit Plymouth Rock, or the
Nash Dinosaur Tracks in Western
Massachusetts. Heck, the Crayola Factory
in Easton, Pennsylvania was pretty lame too. There we'd be, bouncing away in the car
with a big fat yellow circle on the map, only to be hit with an admission fee to crap.
And then there are days like today. Today is the kind of day we dream about. Punxsutawney
is everything we like in a roadtrip destination, complete with a town mascot, friendly
townsfolk, a theme-oriented local eatery, and an outright, full-scale "Claim to Fame".
Who put Punxsutawney on the map? First, a rodent. Second, Bill Murray.
Punxsutawney Phil and Phyllis, famous marmot prognosticators. | |
Punxsutawney is a town that puts the Capital (Weather Capital, that is) in Capitalism.
Have you ever really sat down and thought about Groundhog Day? February 2nd, if a groundhog
sees his shadow, we'll have six more weeks of winter. That's the whole holiday. It's like
basing your whole town's economy on "In like a lion, out like a lamb".
But they do it, and do it well. We saw the stage setup at Gobbler's Knob, the Groundhog Zoo at the
library, and the proposed Groundhog clock for the town square. They had groundhogs on the diner,
the road, the car wash, the fire department, the sides of buildings. They had Phil sweaters, Phil
umbrellas, Phil thermometers, Phil frisbees, figurines, chocolate candies, and snowglobes. They had
postcards with the mayor wearing his little top hat and Phil wearing his little top hat. Incidentally,
it would rock to be the mayor of Punxsutawney. If I could pick a town to be mayor of, this would
be it.
Meet Dean HeLal:
Owner of Punxy Phil's 'Cakes & Steaks
What a nice guy! We asked at the gas station where we could find a good place to eat. She said there
were really only two diners in town. Taking a right at the second light would take you to Gimmick's, but
a left at the fourth light brought you to Punxy Phil's (Why do small towns give you directions by traffic
lights?)
We entered Phil's and met the owner at the cash register. He guessed we were from out of town and
chatted with us for a bit. Besides "where are you from" and "where are you headed", his first question
was "Did you see the movie?" Of course we had... one of our favourites.
His food was excellent, his staff was friendly, and his place was awesome. There was a great mural on
one of the walls, of Mr. & Mrs. Groundhog reading the February 2nd newspaper in their hidey hole. If
you're ever passing through Punxy, say hi to Dean!
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The best part about Punxsutawney (besides spelling it) was the fact that we actually got to meet Phil!
He wasn't one of those snobby celebrities that won't even smile when you ask them for an autograph. He
just went about his groundhog business at the library, and took a moment to stop and wave at a couple
of adoring fans. What a guy!
And what a town! We'll be back someday, Punxsutawney!
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 Today's Weather:
Good Day. Sunshine.
| Sleeping Quarters |
Tomlinson Run State Pk
 
Site #11. Tonight we discover the benefit of an electrical site. We can work on the site
as long as we like and not worry about the car battery dying. Of course we don't have
an extension cord, so I'm way over here and the fire's way over there.
By the way, Aimee cooked up an awesome thanksgiving dinner! Yummy!
Cost: $17.00
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Bkfast:
 | Place
Location |
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| K's Order: | Punxy's Omelette,
Pancakes (2),
Coffee |
| A's Order: | Pigs in little thin crepey blankets
Coffee |
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| Cost: | $11.58 |
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Dinner:
| Campground
West Virginia |
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Thxgvg
dinner: | Pork Chops,
Applesauce,
Corn, Onions,
Wild Rice |
| Dessert: | Fire Roasted Apples! |
Don't That Beat All!
There we were, driving out of our campground on Canadian Thanksgiving, and a bunch of wild turkeys run across the road in front
of the car. They must have known.
Happy Turkey Day to all our Canadian fans!
Happy Columbus Day to the Americans!
Happy Groundhog Day to anyone else!
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