Montebello (or Monte Bello) Islands WA

The Montebello Islands are a NW WA archipelago of about 175 small islands. Located between Onslow (south) and Karratha (north), the name means ‘beautiful mountain’ in Italian. They are famed for their excellent fishing, snorkeling and diving particularly at the site of Australia’s first shipwreck, the ‘Tryal’ (1622). Only about 1/6th of the islands are named with the two main ones, Hermite and Trimouille, being named by French explorer, Baudin (1801). Following an important pearl industry in the 19th century, a couple of islands (Trimouille and Alpha) were used for British atomic testing in 1950s with some infrastructure remnants still visible. Fortunately, the Montebellos are now protected by a conservation park with access from Onslow or Dampier but there is no accommodation available. Further information Tel (08) 9144 4600.