That is a lot. Good luck.

I have very fond memories of Farley. In the Fall of 1980 my wife and daughter and I took a leaf trip to Wisconsin with two other couples. Unfortunately, we didn't think about motels until the last minute, and it turned out that it was Homecoming for Loras in Dubuque, and virtually every other small college in the area. Several hours of calling resulted in the only motel with vacancies anywhere near the Iowa-Wisconsin border -- the Rainbow Court in Farley.

This was something out of It Happened One Night. The rooms were actually individual cabins. They were $12 a night. My wife and I got a "double" because our daughter was with us: two attached cabins for $15 a night. There was paint-by- number "art" on the walls, mismatched (but clean) sheets, aluminum foil on the rabbit ears of the b&w TV, and a cement floor in the shower.

In the morning we got up and went to the diner in the parking lot. It had 6 or 8 stools arranged around a horse shoe counter. The owner, a transplant from of all places Rhode Island, cooked breakfast on a small griddle, just large enough to cook two meals at a time. My wife and daughter both has french toast, bacon and hot chocolate. I had sausage, eggs, hash browns with cheese, pancakes and coffee. Total bill: $5.

I don't know if the motel and diner are still there, but I smile every time I think of Farley.

Farley is a pretty nice little town.

Unfortunately the Rainbow Court is no longer there and I don't think the diner is either but I'm not positive on that. In fact this was the first time I heard of the Rainbow Court. I might ask my parents if they ever heard of Rainbow Court.

Nowadays there are a few more options for hotels in the area. I wouldn't send people to the hotel in Peosta unless there was no other choice but wouldn't have a problem with sending people to the hotels in Dyersville if everything in Dubuque was taken.

This was 1980. One of my friends who went on the trip was a car salesman at the time. He spent all of Saturday afternoon, before we left, on the dealership's WATS line (remember those?) calling every single hotel and motel in northeastern Iowa, western Illinois and southwestern Wisconsin within about 30 miles of the Mississippi. The Rainbow Court was all that was available. I'm glad it was; not only because we had a place to stay, but because if we had stayed at a Holiday Inn, or other chain, the trip would largely be forgotten. As it is, it lives on in the memories of 6 people. Sadly, my friend who made the calls has passed away, but those of us who are left, including our then 6 year old daughter, all fondly remember this trip, and honor his memory, in part because of his booking us into the Rainbow Court.