The Montebello was a French steel barque of 2,284 tons and 277 ft, built in 1900, that went ashore on Kangaroo Island's south coast in rough and misty weather in 1906 while heading to load wheat. The Marine Life Network lists her as a 15 m dive with well-scattered remains and general reef fauna, and notes that artefacts are displayed at the Kingscote museum.

More than a century of Southern Ocean swell has flattened the wreck into a debris field of steel plates, ribs, fittings and ballast, overgrown with kelp and brown algae and colonised by reef fish, rock lobster and invertebrates. Wrecks like this reward patient divers who enjoy tracing a ship's outline from fragments; there is no structure to penetrate.

The Montebello belongs to a remarkable concentration of wrecks on Kangaroo Island's south and west coasts – Loch Vennachar, Loch Sloy, You Yangs, Osmanli and others – a record of how dangerous the approaches to Adelaide were in the age of sail. Diving her is a matter of waiting for a rare calm, finding the site with local help, and launching from Vivonne Bay. Historic remains are protected and must not be disturbed. For most visitors, the museum display is the accessible part of the story. It suits experienced boat divers and wreck historians. Anyone who does locate the wreck is encouraged to report the position and condition to DEW's maritime heritage unit so the site record can be improved. Treat any first visit as a search dive, with a clear plan and conservative gas.

The Montebello lies on Kangaroo Island's exposed south coast; the exact position is not published in the sources consulted. Access would be by private boat launched from Vivonne Bay (the main south-coast ramp) in exceptional calm, with local knowledge. Artefacts are displayed at the Kingscote museum (Hope Cottage), which is the practical way to see the wreck's story.

Launching and running along the south coast requires careful weather judgement and a seaworthy vessel.

Kangaroo Island's south and west coasts face the open Southern Ocean and take the full force of prevailing south-westerly swells, commonly 2-5 m and bigger in winter. Diving is only possible in rare windows: swell under about 1-1.5 m, light northerly or north-easterly (offshore) winds and several settled days, most often in late summer and autumn (February-May). Rips and undertow are strong on the beaches, and wave surge reaches the bottom at recreational depths.

Conditions can change within hours as fronts arrive – check the Bureau of Meteorology coastal forecast and swell models, and have a sheltered north-coast alternative.

Descend to the scattered steel plates and fittings at about 15 m, survey the debris field on a compass pattern, and return to the anchor before surge increases.

Protected historic shipwreck – no souveniring.

No regular operator – private boats only.