[unruhjonny]

I did a quick search before creating this thread, and didn't see any recent discussion of this nature.

I just got back from my almost-annual PNW trek - which 90% of the time this trip includes me attending the Portland Expo Center swap meet.

I have been attending the PDX swap meet for roughly twenty years;
This year was the third time that I took in the swap meet at the race track;
Last year my cousin suggested that the track meet was "this was the place for deals" - and that the track meet was getting larger at the expense of the expo meet.

I was at the track meet for Thursday morning;
I felt once again, that the track meet wasn't worth attending.
Don't get me wrong - there was some neat stuff, but not enough to justify the parking & entry fee;
Then the golf carts, bicycles, and pets became a real nuisance at times...

On Friday I was at the Expo meet;
I forgot that last year(?) the parking was opened on the expo grounds, and did my regular parking in the field, and long march to the expo grounds - so I can't complain about my own screw up...

Regarding the expo meet;
It used to be that the sheer size of the meet at the expo center made the visit worth while, even if you left empty (or nearly empty) handed.
With 3/4 (or more) of the outdoor space now used for vehicle parking, and still many booth spaces empty indoors, it is a shadow if it's former self.

It also seemed that at one time, the parking was reasonable and the gate fee wasn't too bad;
Now parking has exceeded the gate/entry fee, and with the expo meet seeming to continue to shrink, I am thinking this might have been my last PDX swap meet for the foreseeable future.
I am grateful that kids twelve and under are still free, but overall I was a little disappointed...
If the parking was $5 instead of $15, I would probably not be so soured on these meets; surely the hosts are raking in the money @ $15 to park, and $13 per head to enter - but to me, I am getting fed up.

I have spoken to a guy who regularly attends the Orange county meets, and he said they aren't what they used to be, but I can see from his posts on yenko.net that he is still finding plenty of good stuff.

I would love to hear any opinions from attendees, or vendors of either of the Portland meets, or any other large meets.

I didn't buy any of the four items pictured, but they all seemed like interesting items - first two from the track meet, second two from the expo meet.