SQUAW VALLEY PARK

The County of Placer owns, operates and maintains the community park, located at the intersection of Highway 89 and Squaw Valley Road .  For facility reservations, please contact Placer County staff at 530-886-4901.  The Squaw Valley Public Service District has no ownership or maintenance responsibilities for this community park.

Currently, the park consists of an artificial turf play area, a tot lot, three picnic tables, a wetlands overlook area, a trail staging area for users of the various recreational trails, a multi-use trail connecting the County park to the Western States Trail, and the Squaw Valley-Tahoe City paved bicycle trail.  Restroom facilities are also available.

                                       PICKLEBALL COMES TO SQUAW VALLEY!

                          Locals enjoying Pickleball at Squaw Valley court

Pickleball, America's fastest growing sport, has just arrived in our area, is now being played in  Squaw Valley, and locals and visitors are invited to try it out.

 You probably didn't know that Pickleball is America's fastest growing sport, but it is, and is rapidly becoming very popular in many parts of the U.S. 

While generally similar to tennis, Pickleball is played on a much smaller court, and uses a "wiffle ball" and paddles resembling large ping-pong paddles. It is a fun and fast game, but does not take as much energy and running as is required of tennis. It can be played by all ages, including young children, and because it is relatively easy on the knees and other body parts, it is especially popular with former tennis players, who because of age, or old injuries, have had to give up tennis.   The strokes are quite similar to tennis, so experienced tennis players can play it well almost  immediately.  It is also very easy to learn for new players.

Pickleball is presently being played on a temporary court in the lower parking lot at the new Squaw  Valley Park, located near the entrance to the valley off Highway 89. To find the court, turn into  the park entrance off Squaw Valley Road, proceed straight ahead, then turn 180 degrees to your left and go to the end of the lot. (It is very near the tower sign at the intersection of Squaw Valley Road and Highway 89, but there is no long term parking at the tower sign--you have to drive into the parking lot of the park in order to park your car.)

The present hours of operation of the new court are Saturday and Wednesday mornings from 9:00 am until noon, but these hours can be expanded as soon as more players become interested. Also, one or more permanent courts may be established as the popularity of Pickleball increases.

 For more information and if you are interested in giving Pickleball a try, call John and Jean  Sproehnle at (530) 583-4196 or email to jsprain@msn.com. They are Official Pickleball Ambassadors and are the folks who brought Pickleball to our community. Also, they have control of the balls, paddles and equipment, so you need to coordinate with them to take part.

There is a very informative website of the USA Pickleball Association at www.usapa.org.

(This release was sent by John Wilcox, a local Pickleball enthusiast 581-3022)

                                                   Layout of Squaw Valley Park