Excursion Car 318

This 36-inch gauge excursion car was constructed in the 1980s by the Northern Queen Motel in Nevada City, California using mechanical components salvaged from multiple West Side Lumber Company flatcars dating from the 1920s. This composite construction approach remains typical of narrow gauge operations seeking to create working equipment from whatever narrow gauge components are available to them.

The car's number, 318, was selected as the next higher unused number in the West Side Lumber Company's recorded serialization sequence, maintaining continuity with the authentic WSLCo equipment from which it was built. This numbering convention honors the car's component heritage and its connection to one of California's most significant narrow gauge logging railroads.

The car passed to a private owner in 2017 and was leased to SPCRR from 2017 through 2025 for passenger excursion service. SPCRR purchased the car outright in February 2025, making it a permanent addition to the museum's operational rolling stock. The car continues to serve in passenger operations, its composite construction representing both the resourcefulness of narrow gauge preservation and the authentic mechanical heritage of California logging railroads.