Ayotte Kicks Off New Hampshire’s Summer Travel And Tourism Season With Ice Cream And Apple Crisp

BOSCAWEN, NH — State officials kicked off the start of the summer tourism season in New Hampshire by enjoying ice cream in Boscawen.

Gov. Kelly Ayotte, as well as officials from the tourism and agriculture departments, were at Richardson Farm on Water Street to promote New Hampshire’s Original Ice Cream Trail, 69 “must-visit” shops in every part of the state. Ayotte said she hoped to visit them all, noting that ice cream hits the spot during the summer.

“You should see the amazing flavors they have here,” she said. “Please come out and enjoy these great New Hampshire businesses.”

Jim Richardson of Richardson Farm has been a dairy farmer for many generations. Originally, his family settled in Pelham, not far from the state border with Dracut, Massachusetts. In the old days, the extra milk would be sold off the back of a cart in the town square.

“You couldn’t swing a dead cat without hitting a Richardson down there that was milking a cow,” he quipped.

In the early 1900s, raw milk sales shifted to bottling, then to home delivery through the 1970s. At one point, he said, there were 10 in the Pelham and Dracut area. Later, the family moved to Amherst after business began to slow down. The family then moved from milk to ice cream base production in the 1950s.

“We probably haven’t made anywhere near the most ice cream in the state, but I’ve probably been doing it the longest,” Richardson said. “It doesn’t mean it’s any good. It just means I’m old.”

Richardson said the southern part of the state really started to change a lot, so the family moved to Boscawen about 25 years ago. He said the town is like the way the southern part of the state used to be.

“It’s kinda nice,” he said.

Local ingredients are included in their ice cream, he said, such as milk from Contoocook Creamery, black raspberries from Naboth Gardens in Pittsfield, and maple syrup from Rogers Maple in Warner.

About 14 years ago, Richardson said, the dairy promotion board came up with the idea of coming up with an ice cream trail. It was only $100, so he said, “What the heck, we were in.”

In the first couple of years, people from around the state were coming to the farm. A few years after that, people from around New England would show up. Three years ago, CBS News did a piece on three of the farms about ice cream, and since then, people have come to Richardson from California, Utah, the Midwest, and all over the Northeast.

Click here to download the Ice Cream Trail map and participate in a free T-shirt contest.

Richardson said he had made deep connections with tourists, including other farmers, who always dreamt of having an ice cream shop. A conversation with one customer, who noted other states had started ice cream trails, led him to surmise that New Hampshire’s might be the first, although he was not sure.

Michelle Cruz, the director of the New Hampshire Division of Travel and Tourism Development, expected about 4.8 million visitors to the state this summer despite the instability in fuel costs and the economy. Even though there were concerns, the travel sector looked to be in pretty good shape for the first quarter.

“So, what we’re seeing is that the travel spending is up more than 3 percent,” she said, “hotel demand is up 2 percent, and air travel continues to grow modestly. We continue to look at these numbers to see how travel changes.”

That estimate, she said, was about the same as last year, when looking at forecasting models. The state expected visitors to New Hampshire to spend about $2.6 billion.

“We’re looking at a season ahead, that is optimistic,” Cruz said, noting memories and moments will be made by visitors when visiting the Granite State.

Josh Marshall, the assistant commissioner for the New Hampshire Department of Agriculture, Markets & Food, said while farmers were good at producing delicious food, it was also a “memorable experience” to visit the state’s farms for berry picking, table dinners, and the ice cream trail. Having grown up in Boscawen, he knew Richardson Farm and called their family history “quite impressive.” He added, “There are businesses across the state that provide similar opportunities for visitors, and many of those you will see on the ice cream.”

At Richardson, state officials also unveiled some of its advertising campaign, including billboards at the Boston Aquarium MBTA station and a billboard in the Boston Theater District. Promotions are also being done in Montreal, Canada, Florida, and other states.

A new “Live Free” song has also been released to “celebrate the spirit of New Hampshire.”

After the press conference, state officials toured the ice cream stand and enjoyed apple crisp and vanilla ice cream made at the farm.

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