A tractor sits in an open hay field off of Schoodac road in Warner against a backdrop of leaves turning a varity of colors. The Warner Fall Foliage festival starts on Friday through Sunday with open air concerts, two parades and a 5-mile road race. For more information go to http://wfff.org
A tractor sits in an open hay field off of Schoodac road in Warner against a backdrop of leaves turning a varity of colors. The Warner Fall Foliage festival will be held in October again this year. For more information go to http://wfff.org Credit: Geoff Forester / Monitor staff

New Hampshire officials predict the state will draw about 3% more visitors this year than last year during leaf-peeping season.

The relatively dry weather has led many meteorologists to predict that this should be a good season for fall foliage in New England. Leaves are turning in the North Country and have begun to turn farther south.

The Division of Travel and Tourism Development forecasts that about 3.9 million people will visit New Hampshire between now and November, spending an anticipated $2 billion, which is 5% more than last year.

One concern is a possible lack of Canadian visitors due to the Trump administration’s on-again-off-again trade war with that country. However, the state tourism division said U.S.-Canada border crossing data has shown year-over-year increases during the past three months, “providing a positive indicator as New Hampshire enters its second-busiest travel season.”

As far as tourism goes, fall foliage season trails summer in overall visitor counts and spending, but exceeds the figures in winter despite the appeal of snow sports.

David Brooks can be reached at dbrooks@cmonitor.com. Sign up for his Granite Geek weekly email newsletter at granitegeek.org.