Rencontre East

Rencontre East is a small, out port community in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada located north east of Belleoram, and west of Terrenceville in Fortune Bay. The population was 136 in September 2010. This small community is not connected to any surrounding areas by road but is accessible by scheduled ferry service. All of the roads are dirt and ATV s are the main source of transportation. The community uses breakwaters to hold the roads in place and keep the water from washing them away. The main industry is cod and lobster fishing. Rencontre East is the location of one of only a few molybdenum mines in Canada's history. The mine was located at Ackley City at Rencontre Lake just north of the town. The mine was closed with only two-thousand tonnes of mineral being exported. Since Newfoundland was then a part of the British Commonwealth, it was not permitted to export to the United States. The USA, at that point in WW1, was a neutral country, and ore would not be sent there, with the chance that it could be used against them, However, interest in the ore has resulted in new drilling planned for 2011 to determine if enough mineral can be found to possibly restart mining. The town has two grocery stores, a volunteer fire department, an all grade school and a community center. There are two churches, one Anglican (St. Stephens) and one Catholic (St. Josephs). The past decade in particular has seen the towns population decline sharply due to a large elderly demographic combined with a lack of industry to entice young people to stay. The school however has undergone some changes in recent years, a fitness room was constructed in 2008 and is used every day by the school children. The school also has a large playing surface outside which the students use often to play ball hockey, kick ball, and hold certain events. St. Stephen's All Grade school now has a total of just 19 students, from kindergarten to grade 12, which means a favorable student/teacher ratio and better possibilities to learn.

Rencontre East is a moderate tourism site in the summer, when people from all over travel to this little town for a view of the beautiful scenery and maybe even a trip to Rencontre Lake. During the summer months many residents go up Rencontre Lake to their cabins, there is no electricity and it truly is a beautiful place. In the summer there is also a small coffee shop opened just across from the government wharf where many people traveling on the ferry go to have a bite to eat. Aquaculture is proceeding in 2011, with the advent of Salmon farming. As the traditional Cod and Lobster fisheries are waning, mostly because it becoming uneconomical to do so and the age of the fishermen nearing that of retirement, modern fish farming will reverse the downturn of the town.

As of July, 2011, aquaculture in Rencontre East became fully operational, with more than 20 of the towns people working on the three sites. All together, there are more than 2 million salmon in the sites.

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See also

• List of cities and towns in Newfoundland and Labrador