From Stoneridge Shopping Center in Pleasanton to Westfield centers in San Francisco and San Jose, thousands of shoppers have crowded into malls and businesses throughout the Bay Area so far this weekend with the last day of "Black Friday" sales ending today.

The hunt for holiday discounts continued in full swing Saturday throughout the Bay Area with Stoneridge Shopping Center and its parking lots still filled to near-capacity by mid-afternoon.

Electronic signs along northbound I-680 at the Sunol Grade warned motorists to use alternative routers such as a Vallecitos Road to bypass half-mile-long backups at I-580 and El Charro Road as shopper waited to reach the newly-opened Paragon Outlets in Livermore.

The flood of shoppers surged into Bay Area malls starting late on Thanksgiving Day, with Stoneridge opening its doors at midnight.

"In response to feedback from our shoppers, we decided to open our doors at midnight to accommodate eager shoppers who wanted to get an early start on their holiday purchases," said Carrie Williams, director of Marketing & Business Development at Stoneridge.

In San Francisco, crowds of shoppers have been bubbling up from the BART station at the Westfield Mall on Powell Street and into the shopping center.

"We definitely have had a big influx of shoppers - people from Union Square made their way over here," Westfield San Francisco Marketing Director
Amy Benson said today."

She said the mall had already seen a higher number of shoppers compared to last year's Black Friday weekend counts.

At Sun Valley Shopping Center in Concord, food purveyors have seen some of the longest lines ever, as did department stores such as Macy's and JC Penny, and clothing retailers H&M and Forever 21, said Kim Trupiano, the mall's marketing director.

"People are really shopping," she said. "I think it's a good indicator that people are willing to spend."

Some shoppers in San Francisco said they weren't searching for specific deals, but turned out to stock up on holiday gifts while spending time with family.

Debi Cheek, 58, and her daughter Christa Cheek, 31, headed to San Francisco from Modesto in keeping with a family Black Friday shopping tradition.

"We didn't have a list," said Debi Cheek, who carried a few Macy's shopping bags.

"I don't think you could give me a good enough deal to shop on Thanksgiving," she said.

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