Woodstock Willie told Bob Hudgins (center) that six more weeks of winter are on the way, during the Feb. 2 festival in Woodstock. (Photo courtesy of Rick Bellairs)

It’s official … Woodstock Willie, McHenry County’s resident weather prognosticator and groundhog emeritus, was awakened from his slumbers in a tree stump and saw his shadow.

The harbinger translates to six more weeks of winter, something not appreciated by a crowd of approximately 350 people gathered in the historic town square to learn their short-term meteorological fate.

The retiring master of ceremonies, Bob Hudgins, translated the message from Willie, with only mild difficulty.

“On Feb. 2, at 7:07 a.m., the seer of seers, prognosticator of prognosticators, emerged reluctantly, but alertly in Woodstock, Ill., and stated to me in groundhog-ese, that I definitely see my shadow.”

The event kicked off a weekend’s worth of activities that also celebrated the 25th anniversary of the movie, “Groundhog Day,” with Bill Murray, which used Woodstock town and area sites as locations in the film. The Feb. 2 official Lions Club Pancake Breakfast, following the weather prediction, sat 150 chilly attendees, with many more turned away, due to sheer numbers.

“We had over 100 folks at our Trivia Contest, and visitors from Ohio, Utah, Montana, Wisconsin, and Florida … all to celebrate the movie, and where it was filmed,” said Craig Krandell, one of the co-chairs for the Woodstock Groundhog Days committee. “We prepare for the event about six months in advance, and hold about five meetings, or so, along the way to fine-tune things.”

There was something for everyone: a howling contest, a chili cook-off, a dinner dance, a bowling tournament, Woodstock Willie’s Beer Party, a Woodstock Community Choir concert, a bean bag tournament, Family Fun Day, storyteller Jim May’s Groundhog Tales, and all things imaginable regarding the movie. As fans took pictures standing in certain spots, during the walking tour of the filming sites, there were continuous free showings of the movie at the local theater.

“This is the 25th anniversary of the film, and Bob Hudgins’ last hurrah,’ said Krandell, “He has a great recollection of sites and gave walking tours around the square, and was part of the effort involved with the selection of the town for the movie.”

Hudgins is also relinquishing his duties after more than 15 years, and in doing so, the annual event will lose its best guide and storyteller for tours of the filming sites.

“He was responsible for bringing (the late director) Harold Ramis to town, negotiating between the city and the production company, and working with the businesses to set up some of the filming locations,” said Rick Bellairs, a 13-year member of the committee. “He has a lot of great stories from the shoot like when the groundhog bit Bill Murray. Another time, Murray was acting up, so Ramis made him walk in an icy puddle for several takes to show him who was boss on the set.”

The committee itself is co-chaired by Krandell and Pam Moorhouse. Many of its members have served a tenure of more than a decade. The annual festivities have drawn national interest, rivaling the yearly default commotion surrounding the predictions of Pennsylvania’s “Punxsutawny Phil.”

The Woodstock sites remain the big draw, although other sites in the film included Waukegan’s Amstutz Highway, and a rock quarry at the Illinois-Indiana border on I-294.

“Our groundhog-day festival is a chance for visitors to experience our beautiful historic square, and the entire historic downtown area,” said Jane Howie, the Executive Assistant to the City Manager.

However, now that the success of the 2017 festival will become another good memory, the weather will not. It’s six more weeks of winter … Woodstock Willie said so.