Залив Энкантер (Zaliv Enkanter)

Bay on the south central coast of South Australia

Encounter Bay is a bay in the Australian state of South Australia located on the state's south central coast about south of the state capital of Adelaide. It was named by Matthew Flinders after his encounter on 8 April 1802 with Nicolas Baudin, the commander of the Baudin expedition of 1800–03. It is the site of both the mouth of the River Murray and the regional city of Victor Harbor. It is one of four "historic bays" located on the South Australian coast.

Although traditional ownership has long been ascribed to the Ramindjeri clan of the Ngarrindjeri people, linguist Rob Amery of the University of Adelaide suggested in a 1998 paper that Kaurna traditional lands "may have extended as far eastward as Encounter Bay and that the occupation of Encounter Bay by the Ramindjeri in the late 1830s may have been a response to the activities of whalers in the area". He also notes that the "Encounter Bay people" mentioned in 1836 by Colonel Light and his party at Rapid Bay in 1836 spoke the Kaurna language. The Ramindjeri language name for Encounter Bay was Ramong, although some sources ascribe this name to The Bluff only.

Encounter Bay was named by Matthew Flinders on 8 April 1802 after his encounter with Nicolas Baudin, both of whom were charting the Australian coastline for their respective countries (Britain and France). The encounter between the scientists was peaceful, even though they believed their countries were at war at the time. (Both parties were unaware that the Treaty of Amiens, ceasing hostilities, had been signed on 25 March 1802.) After British colonisation of South Australia, shore based bay whaling stations operated on the coast of Encounter Bay from June 1837 at Police Point, Granite Island and Rosetta Head. The last of these closed down in 1855. They were the most successful and longest lasting whaling stations in South Australia. An attempt was made to re establish the fishery in 1871–72.

The bay's coastline is the site for the following settlements: Victor Harbor, Port Elliot, Middleton and Goolwa.

The following protected areas exist within the bay’s waters: the Granite Island Recreation Park, the Pullen Island Conservation Park and the West Island Conservation Park, while the bay’s waters are within the boundaries of the Encounter Marine Park. The following protected areas adjoin the shores of the bay: the Coorong National Park.