Archaeological excavations on land and underwater have revealed that during the peak of whaling in the 1580s, there were over a thousand people working at the whaling station in Red Bay, Labrador alone. This harbor, known as Butus or Grand Bay to the Basque people, was likely the largest port in the world at that time. This extensively used site encompassed all the key elements associated with Basque overseas whaling activities; its traditions and techniques (an industry that flourished for three centuries globally by the Basques). Unearthed remains include a network of over a dozen shore-based stations, typically consisting of tryworks where whale blubber was rendered into oil in copper pots over fire pits, as well as cooperatives, workshops, temporary dwellings, and wharves. There is also a burial ground and lookout point. The collection of artifacts and numerous bones of bowhead and fin whales completed the picture. Well-preserved shipwreck remnants, including four large sailing vessels (whaling galleons) and several smaller boats used for whaling, have also been discovered in Red Bay harbor itself, providing unparalleled insights into Iberian shipbuilding technology of the 16th century.

After several decades of prosperity, Basque whaling in Canada began to decline in the final years of the 16th century. Several factors contributed to this decline, including overhunting, the discovery of new whaling grounds elsewhere, climate change, and changing political environments. The collective knowledge gained from years of terrestrial and underwater research in Red Bay has greatly changed our understanding of the beginnings of large-scale and overseas whaling, as well as our knowledge of early European history in North America, particularly the role played by the Basques.