Coombs Old Country Market

Kristian Graaten, a Norwegian immigrant, built a sod roof on his market building in the 1970s in the turf-roof tradition of home, and the family put goats up there to graze it; the joke became the business. Goats have been on the roof most summers since, and the market grew from a produce stand into a large operation with a bakery, an ice cream counter, imported foods and a warren of shops around it. The animals are lifted up in spring and come down in autumn, and they are not there in winter or in bad weather. The village around has filled with more shops trading on the same traffic.

What you actually see

• The goats on the roof - animals grazing a sod roof above the shop.
• The market hall - bakery, deli, imported foods and produce under one roof.
• The surrounding shops - a village of stores grown up around the market.
• The sod roof itself - the Norwegian turf-roof technique that started it.

When to go

May to September for the goats, which are only up in the warm months and come down in rain. The market is open year-round. Summer traffic on Highway 4A backs up past the entrance.

Honest expectations

No goats outside summer and none in wet weather, which disappoints many. It is very crowded in July and August and parking overflows. Prices are tourist prices.

Nearby

Cathedral Grove lies west; Parksville is east.