Climate in Olympic Valley (California)

The climate of Olympic Valley is moderately continental, with cold, snowy winters and sunny summers, which are warm during the day, but with cool nights. In fact, there are strong temperature variations between night and day.
Olympic Valley, also called Squaw Valley, is a winter resort located in eastern California, at 1,900 meters (6,200 ft) above sea level, in the Sierra Nevada. A few miles east is Lake Tahoe.

In winter, the night temperature normally drops below freezing, sometimes even by several degrees.
On the coldest nights of the year, the temperature generally reaches -18/-20 °C (-4/0 °F), but sometimes it can even drop below. In February 1989, it dropped to -34 °C (-29 °F) at the Truckee airport. Snowfalls are abundant: in a year, almost 7 meters (23 ft) of snow fall. Usually, it snows from November to April.

In summer, there are strong differences in temperature between night and day, so it can be cold at night, while it is warm during the day. On the hottest days of the year, the temperature generally reaches 30/33 C (86/91 °F). On rare occasions, thunderstorms can break out in the afternoon.



In Tahoe City, a city located a short distance away, on the shores of Lake Tahoe, at 1,900 meters (6,200 ft) above sea level, the average temperature of the coldest month (January) is of -1.1 °C (30.1 °F), that of the warmest month (July) is of 16.7 °C (62 °F). Here are the average temperatures.

Precipitation amounts to 845 millimeters (33.3 inches) per year: so, it is at an intermediate level. It ranges from 5 mm (0.2 in) in the driest month (July) to 160 mm (6.3 in) in the wettest (January). Here is the average precipitation.

Best Time

The best time to visit Olympic Valley is from June to September, as it is the warmest and sunniest period. However, it is better to bring a jacket and a sweater because it can get cold at night even in summer.