This article first appeared in the May 2013 issue of Canoe & Kayak Magazine, in a feature they called “Covert Operators.” About the seven boaters featured, they said, “The most remarkable paddlers are often the ones you’ve never heard of. These fiercely independent characters go their own way, without seeking attention or praise in, say, the pages of a magazine. Consider these seven covers blown.”

Well, Lacey wasn’t flying under everyone’s radar. In 2012 we ran three articles on some of her Mexico Boating Adventures: Part I, Part II and Part III. She’ll also be penning a series of articles in the coming months about recent and upcoming trips. Read here on how she has come to live the life of a…

River Gypsy

Lacey taking a break from a long day on the oars. ©Lacey Anderson

When Lacey Anderson was held captive by an angry mob in farthest Guatemala, she came to a stunning epiphany. “I realized,” she recalls, “that this could be my last day.” For Lacey, the cold realization of mortality came with more irony than most. Lacey grew up in Southern California as a “wild child,” she says; reared through the foggy lens of addiction, growing into another high school dropout. Fortunately, an innate connection with nature provided some peace. She read how-to books on camping, and took her first backpacking trip at sixteen. Nature’s solace led her back to school, where she earned a GED and a teaching degree, and eventually her own classroom of sixth graders. She had two daughters. Life went on. Continue reading →