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County Kildare , in the heart of the Pale, forms part of the hinterland of Dublin. Although it lacks the spectacle of the Wicklow Mountains, or the extraordinary range of ancient monuments of the lush Boyne Valley to the north, it has a quiet charm of its own. The landscape is a calm one of rolling farmland for the most part, with open grasslands and rough pasture, just touching the drab stretches of the monotonous Bog of Allen in the northwest. This is ancient countryside, marked by a string of Celtic crosses at Moone, Old Kilcullen and Castledermot. But you're also constantly made aware that you're in Pale country - with big, stone, estate walls bordering many of the fields and Georgian proportions in the buildings, as well as more obvious attractions such as the magnificent Castletown House with its model village at Celbridge; the Grand Canal , which traverses the county and has a walkable towpath; and the pin-neat National Stud at Kildare town with its fabulous horses and ornamental gardens. Because of its proximity to Dublin, there's no problem about transport in County Kildare although it's worth avoiding driving between Dublin and Kildare during rush hour on weekdays as delays are common. The main buses to Limerick ply up and down the N7 trunk road, with the rail line running close beside it for most of the way. Accommodation is less easy - you're reliant on B&Bs, many of them the more expensive kind, catering for business travellers rather than tourists.
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