The tradition of Groundhog Day is over a century old and revered by communities across Pennsylvania, most famously those in Punxsutawney. But those whose excitement for the holiday stops with watching Bill Murray's film set during the holiday may not know that there's more than one lodge that houses a prescient groundhog.

The Slumbering Groundhog Lodge of Quarryville will hold its 115th annual Groundhog Day celebration on Thursday, Feb. 2, at the Chateau in the Valley of White Rock, south of Quarryville. Festivities will begin with a ceremonial parade at 8 a.m., and coffee and doughnuts will be available for attendees. During the event, hibernating governor Charles N. Hart will make his forecast after he consults the lodge's mascot, a groundhog named Octorara Orphie.

Six observation squads made up by members of the Slumbering Groundhog Lodge will report on whether or not Orphie has seen his shadow. After receiving the reports, the hibernating governor will make his announcement from the top of a manure spreader dubbed "The Pinnacle of Prognostication." Stuart J. Mylin, the lodge's defender of the faith, will speak after the announcement. A demonstration of the "groundhog jig," accompanied by the Groundhog Marching Band, will follow.

"It's a couple hundred people that cast their cares aside once a year and make fools of themselves," said Bill Forrey, who has been a member of the Slumbering Groundhog Lodge for 33 years. After the prediction is made, lodge members will withdraw to their lodge, but attendees will be invited to remain and celebrate.

Each year during the ceremony, the Slumbering Groundhog Lodge initiates a handful of new members called baby groundhogs. The initiates spend each Sunday in January preparing for the induction ritual, which the lodge calls "Baptism by Fire and Water." The ritual begins with each baby groundhog being submerged into the icy Octorara Creek. After enduring the frozen water, the initiates will crouch before an antique cannon, which is then fired over their hindmost parts. "Members take this initiation process quite seriously," Forrey said. "It's a longstanding tradition."

The Slumbering Groundhog Lodge of Quarryville was formed in 1908 and retains hundreds of active members. The tradition of observing Groundhog Day was brought to Pennsylvania by German immigrants, and several other lodges have formed in Lancaster County over the last decade.

To arrive at the Chateau in the Valley of White Rock, proceed south from Quarryville on Route 472 for 4.5 miles. Take a right on Noble Road, then turn left on White Rock Road and proceed for 1 mile.