Punxsutawney Phil popped his head out at sunrise Tuesday morning and saw no shadow.

WGNS was on hand when Rutherford Ralph emerged from his home between Lascassas and Milton. Ralph did not see his shadow and agreed with Phil that spring is on the way.

The Groundhog Day tradition dates back to the German tradition of Candlemas, where if the sun shines on Feb. 2 winter will continue for six weeks, but if its cloudy winter will soon make way for spring.

The tradition is embodied in the verse:
If Candlemas (Feb. 2) be mild and gay,
Go saddle your horses and buy them hay;
But if Candlemas be stormy and black,
It carries the winter away on its back.

In the American tradition, the opposite is true. The shining sun and, consequently, the groundhog’s shadow is the harbinger of an extended winter. This winter started early with cold temperatures and snow blasting the mid-state in December.

So far this winter season Nashville has had five snow events with a total of 9.3 inches of snow with Murfreesboro measuring nearly seven inches.

This has been the snowiest winter since 15.1 inches fell during the winter season of 2002 and 2003.

The snowiest winter of record was in 1959 and 1960 when 38.5 inches of snow fell.