winter sports area in Placer county, northeastern California, U.S. It lies just northwest of Lake Tahoe (Tahoe, Lake). Squaw Valley, the focus of a state recreation area, was the site of the 1960 Winter Olympic Games. It has ice-skating and rock-climbing facilities, ski lifts, and trails and slopes to Squaw Peak (8,885 feet 【2,708 metres】). Alpine Meadows ski resort is immediately to the south. Several state parks and lakes are in the vicinity, as are Eldorado and Tahoe national forests.