CCSO: Missing boater found safe, camping south of Marco Island

EAST NAPLES, Fla. – A missing boater was found safe and camping south of Marco Island in the Everglades National Park late Wednesday, Collier County Sheriff’s Office said.

Charles Guarino, 54, didn’t tell family members what island he intended to paddle to or how long he intended to stay out, according to authorities.

Once found, he told authorities he would stay camped in the Ten Thousand Islands area but would give his daughter a call, according to CCSO spokesperson Kristi Lester.

He was reported missing by his family and last seen around 9 a.m. along the coastline of the Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve in East Naples, the Collier County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday.

A family member dropped Guarino off at the Shell Island Road canoe launch in Rookery Bay in his silver metal canoe with a tent, camping supplies and his cell phone, authorities said.