SOMEWHERE in the Yorkshire Dales there is a secret valley which Askrigg painter, Judith Bromley, and her dog Daisy go to at all seasons of the year, and she has recorded her thoughts and visions for everyone to enjoy in her second book.

Come Down to the Wood - a year in the life of a Dales woodland, has just been published by Great Northern of Ilkey.

The forward was written by David Bellamy, a man concerned about trees being lost over thousands of years, who refers to the author as "part of the green renaissance which will put back, with care, more woods that will once again be for ever England".

This book was produced in partnership with her husband, Robert Nicholls, who is well-known for his wildlife paintings. The hardback version has 12 inside cover pictures of the same scene at different times of the year.

The year is divided into seven starting with January's crisp frozen surface and winter's growth of lichen. Pictures covering the next three months have hints of moss green, catkins and snowdrops interspersed with dark sketches of gale force winds, followed by yellow daffodils, the March hare and lambs.

May brings white blossoms and birdsong in the gill, and a stream with red-brown stoats. Colours become vivid with purply blues of bluebells and new leaves, and softens with pinks of wild cherry and butterflies.

The text states: "The peace seeps into my soul, removing all the worries and frictions of daily life. Here I can sit and simply BE - surrounded by sheer ......existence!"

By the end of May, she recalls in words and pictures cows grazing in fields and a cock pheasant glinting on the boundary wall. In June, she encounters the rushing noise of young deer playing and hedgehogs curled up amid young shoots of bracken. Her sketches of the young shoots resemble arms stretching out in expressive human postures.

The seasons continue through scenes of green and fruit before the sleep of winter, accompanied by lyrical descriptions.

Donations from pre-publication copies will be made to the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, Woodland Trust and Yorkshire Dales Society.

The book is available in bookshops; hard back (ISBN 0-9544002-3-2) £20 with 12 pictures on the end papers, and paperback ( ISBN 0-9544002-4-0) £12.99. There are also signed copies of mounted prints ranging from £10-£50. For further details, call 01969 650266.