Caption: GO Transit's F59PH's have been around for nearly thirty years, but have only made it out to Niagara a few times, with one of the most recent occurrences having one unit put behind a "new" MP40 at the time as backup. This may very well be the first time a solo F59PH has come down to Niagara, and it did so just in time for the Canada Day weekend. Here, 557 powers the last Niagara weekend GO train of the day as it picks up passengers to go back to Toronto. GO Transit employees are known for often not being very receptive of railfans, especially at night, so it was a roll of the dice how this would pan out. Luckily, the dice rolled in my favour. Thanks especially to the crew for turning out the headlights and turning on the class lights. The shot turned out better than I expected.

I had other things to worry about out in the weeds though besides paranoid people as the cooler damp weather this summer has made it a paradise for ticks, and I managed to get bit. Up to 20% of black legged ticks carry Lyme Disease, so it was a scary reminder to stay out of the weeds or at least douse myself in bug spray. This wasn't my first encounter with one either, as I managed to have one latch to my sweater two years ago after falling into a ditch by CP's Welland Yard. Coincidentally, it was over the current hot topic of a SOO SD60.

As for GO 557 however, it came back the next weekend as well. With GO having recently returned to running 6 car trainsets on some trains again, the remaining F59PH's have made appearances on many, and perhaps can live out plenty more runs in Niagara before their legacy on GO Transit ultimately comes to an end in a few years. GO Transit does have 16 new AC powered MP40's on order, and if testing goes well, it is expected all will be delivered by 2018 and replace the remaining F59PH's shortly afterwards. With that in mind, get your shots, as a couple of years will be gone before you know it. After that, the Toronto Railway Museum will likely be the only place you can find an F59PH still in GO colours.