What would cause tens of thousands of people from all over the globe to descend upon a middle-of-nowhere town in Pennsylvania?

Only the Mick Jagger of groundhogs, my friends.

Punxsutawney Phil has inspired a movie, books and generations of children to become meteorologists. OK, maybe not that last part.

But seriously, the furry little dude is the rock star of prognostication, and his legion of fans will descend upon Punxsutawney with fervor on Saturday.

The Inner Circle — you know, those guys in the funny top hats who rule all things groundhog — has already announced on its Web site that they are expecting a larger than average weekend crowd. Visitors should be prepared for a long walk or a two-hour wait for bus rides to the big show at Gobbler’s Knob.

If you plan to travel to Punxsy for a first-hand account of this curious Pennsylvania tradition, get ready for a one heck of a party.

If not, get a taste of the action right here.

I jumped at the chance to chronicle the biggest day of the year in the groundhog capital of the universe.

Call it inexperience — I’ve been an education reporter here at the Times-News for all of eight months — but spending a freezing night outside with other hard-core ’hog fans seemed like it would be plenty-o-fun.

I’ll meet some interesting characters and peruse a massive amount of groundhog-themed merchandise and food specials.

I’ll also probably drink a seizure-inducing amount of coffee to keep myself sharp through a long night of celebration and anticipation.

So, starting Friday afternoon, tune in for updates on the festivities and join me Saturday morning as I hear, straight from the ’hog’s mouth, if we can expect an early spring.

—Sarah Weber