WANCHESE, N.C. — Dare Day has been going on for decades in the Outer Banks and is a special event to many in the community. But recently, the Town of Manteo said in a press release they will not be hosting it this year — an event the town has hosted since 2016.
"It's been a traditional event for the last 50 years, and I guess it was kind of a shock to everyone that it wasn't going to be around this year," said Brenda Fann, with Wanchese Marina.
Fann's reaction was similar to many of our neighbors when they heard the news last week that the Town of Manteo would not be hosting Dare Day this year.
"We know how meaningful Dare Day has been over the years, and this wasn't an easy decision. As we look ahead, we're focused on continuing to grow and support events that bring energy to our community and downtown," said Manteo Mayor Tod Clissold in a press release.
In that release, the town included: "This decision was not made lightly. It followed careful evaluation of multiple factors, including feedback from more than 400 responses to the Town's May 2025 Special Events Survey. The review focused on evolving community interests, event performance, and how best to allocate resources to serve residents and visitors moving forward."
After hearing the news, Wanchese Marina started to discuss if they could find a way to continue the tradition.
"It was kind of a crazy little thought. I'm like, well, you know what? We have the space, we have the property. I said you know, Wanchese is a famous part of the Outer Banks. As we all know, this is where all the seafood comes from, our industrial park and our charter boats," said Fann.
That's exactly what happened. The marina will be hosting "Dare Day Dockside" in June.
"The response from the community has been unbelievable. Not only everybody liking idea, the support, the donations, the sponsorships have been rolling in for the last two days. I'm really, really surprised by the excitement level from everybody," said Fann.
Fann says the traditional family fun events, vendors, food trucks and more will all be on display, but it will also have the Wanchese flair.
"We'll still have our vendors, but we'll have it all showcasing local seafood, local fishermen, the local flair of Wanchese with a few little twists. Anything we can do to bring awareness to the public of how important our commercial fishery and our commercial fishermen are, I think, is phenomenal," said Fann.
Fann outlined so far what they are planning to have on the special day:
• Silent auction benefiting Pathway Forward, which brings soldiers back into the workplace when they come home.
• Harbor Star dolphin tours, with little tours out into the harbor so visitors can see the harbor, see the lighthouse and see what's out there.
• A kids area with rides and games.
• The Landing Grill, the restaurant on property, will feature fresh local seafood baskets, fried flounder, fried shrimp and clam strips.
• Different food vendors.
• Maybe a crab picking station, an oyster station and fish cleaning demonstrations.
• A little kids fishing clinic where they can be taught how to tie on a hook, bait and fish off the docks.
• Meet the Fleet, where boats will be coming in and out all day long. Visitors can walk around, talk to the captains, see fish coming in and get a real feel of what goes on in Wanchese.
Fann says the Town of Manteo has always hosted a special Dare Day event.
"The Town of Manteo, they have done a great job. I'm sure every resident in Dare County thanks the Town of Manteo for all their help on the event and just hosting a killer event," said Fann.
All Wanchese Marina wants to do is continue a day that means so much to so many here in the Outer Banks.
"Just to see the whole community come together and everybody step in to fill something that you figure for the last 50 years, they grew up going to Dare Days, and so it's been in our culture 50 years. It's kind of cool to see that we will have the availability to step up and do something," said Fann.
"Dare Day Dockside" will be at the Wanchese Marina on Saturday, June 6, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, visit the Wanchese Marina Facebook page here.
