The Island Free Press is the first and only online newspaper serving both Hatteras and Ocracoke islands’ locals and visitors. The newspaper made its debut on Sept. 5, 2007 and has grown since then in coverage, content, and popularity with readers on and off the islands. The mission of The Island Free Press is to cover the people, the issues, and the happenings that are constantly shaping our Hatteras and Ocracoke communities.
After a two-year shutdown due to the Coronavirus pandemic, the Wings Over Water Wildlife Festival is celebrating its 25th year in 2022, and returns to the Outer Banks with registration currently open for any visitor or resident who wants to join in this Outer Banks-wide and multiple-day event. The festival will be held from October…Read More from Wings Over Water Wildlife Festival returns with a pair of weekends in 2022
By Joy Crist, IslandFreePress.org With 412,239 visitors recorded in August, the Cape Hatteras National Seashore (CHNS) is on track to have another banner year for visitation in 2022. Per statistics from the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau, CHNS recorded a total of 2,043,904 visitors for the first eight months of the year, or from January 1…Read More from Cape Hatteras National Seashore reports over 2 million visitors through August
After a four-year hiatus, the annual Day at the Docks festival made a triumphant return to Hatteras village, attracting a big crowd that was lured in by the event’s many activities, programs, and competitions that were stationed along the waterfront. Initially launched as a one-day event in 2004, Day at the Docks (DATD) was created…Read More from After a four-year hiatus, Day at the Docks makes a triumphant return to Hatteras village
The Dare County Board of Commissioners adopted a resolution to permanently close a paved portion of Seagull Street in northern Rodanthe at their September 6 meeting, allowing homeowners in the immediate area the ability to move their homes westward, and away from the ocean. The proposal was introduced at the board’s August 1 meeting, where…Read More from Seagull Street in Rodanthe permanently closed to allow oceanfront homes to be moved
With 443,905 visitors recorded in July, (following the second-busiest June ever with a total of 424,206 visitors), the Cape Hatteras National Seashore (CHNS) is on track to have another banner year for visitation in 2022. Per statistics from the Outer Banks Visitors Bureau, CHNS recorded a total of 1,631,665 visitors for the first seven months…Read More from Cape Hatteras National Seashore reports more than 1.6 million visitors through July
The annual Day at the Docks festival is returning to Hatteras village after a lengthy hiatus, with a wide array of both familiar and brand-new events on the two-day schedule. This is the first time that Day at the Docks has been held since 2017, as the event was canceled in 2018 and 2019 due…Read More from Island Free Press: Day at the Docks returns to Hatteras for first time since 2017
National Parks of Eastern N.C. Superintendent David Hallac provided updates on the problematic and endangered oceanfront homes in Rodanthe at a well-attended public meeting at the Rodanthe-Waves-Salvo Community Building on Wednesday night, August 24. In the past two years, four homes along a severely eroded stretch of shoreline in Rodanthe have collapsed into the ocean,…Read More from Island Free Press: Two at-risk Rodanthe oceanfront homes moved, four more to be relocated
A new ABC (Alcoholic Beverage Control) store is on the horizon for Buxton, to replace the current store located in the Osprey Shopping Center. The original store, which opened in 1987 and was the first ABC store on Hatteras Island, has simply become too small for the island community, which has boomed over the past…Read More from Island Free Press: New ABC store coming to Buxton
The North Carolina Utilities Commission appointed Carolina Water Service Inc. as the emergency operator for the Kinnakeet Shores Wastewater Treatment Plant in Avon. Carolina Water Service began operations on Aug. 17. The homeowners in Kinnakeet Shores are “jubilant” at the news that the N.C. Utilities Commission appointed an emergency operator. Click to read more at…Read More from Island Free Press: Carolina Water Service named emergency wastewater treatment operator for Kinnakeet Shores
The Hatteras Island Ocean Center, located in northern Hatteras Village, will soon be under new ownership, due to an upcoming acquisition by the Hatteras Village Civic Association. Conceived and founded by Eric Kaplan, the Ocean Center first opened in 2013. In recent years, Hampton-Sydney College in Virginia has operated the center, with students from the…Read More from Island Free Press: Hatteras Village Civic Association to acquire Hatteras Island Ocean Center