AHello! I am going to be making a fishing themed cake this weekend and I have a dock made of dowels and a thin piece of wood that will be raised above the cake. How far from the edge of the cake would the dowels have to be? I'm concerned its going to mess with the cake if they are too close to the edge. Thanks for any help!

AI'm not sure I fully understand your question. Are you worried that the dowels will show on the size of the cake if you put it too close? If that's the case you're going to have to use good judgment. Just put the dock where it looks right.

ANo I'm worried if the dowels from the dock are too close to the sides it will make the cake unstable. I'm maybe over thinking this

Unless there's a heavy weight on top of the dowels pushing them sideways, then having the dowels close to the edge shouldn't be too much of a problem.  Obviously, you need a bit of something to hold them in, but if they're light and with no lateral movement, then even sticking them between the cake and the fondant would work, in my opinion.