[VIDEO] “DIG:” An Alaskan Snowboard Film Where Ryland Bell Rides “The Line of His Life” — a 3,200-Foot Spine

“It was hands down, unequivocally, the line of my life.”

– Ryland Bell

Ryland Bell has always been a dark horse. Born and raised in Alaska and based year-round in Haines, the notoriously hardcore snowboarder and lifelong commercial fisherman has spent years quietly riding some of the most remote and technical terrain in the Alaska Range and Coast Mountains. His home of Haines is renowned for its enormous alpine spines and steep big-mountain snowboarding, and Bell has built his career around earning his turns in that terrain rather than relying solely on helicopters.

• Related: [VIDEO] “Mistakes Were Made,” Ryland Bell’s Account of Avalanche That Swept Him 1,000 Feet

In April 2025, Bell headed deep into his home mountains on a month-long expedition in search of something different: the biggest and most consequential line of his life. After hiking deep into the backcountry and studying the surrounding terrain, Bell spotted an enormous face that immediately stood apart from the other objectives around him.

And he found one.

The line measured roughly 4,000 vertical feet, including about 3,200 feet above the bergschrund, making it the biggest face of that type Bell had ever ridden. The terrain was extremely steep, reaching around 60 degrees, with complex alpine features that demanded careful route-finding and precise snowboarding.

Bell’s approach was entirely human-powered. Rather than being dropped at the top of the objective, he and his partners climbed into the mountains, allowing them to inspect the snow and terrain from multiple angles before committing to the descent. That process is central to Bell’s approach to big-mountain snowboarding and has helped make him one of the defining riders of Haines’ foot-powered scene.

• Related: [VIDEO] Ryland Bell Shows Us Why Tahoe’s Terrain is World Class

The result is DIG, a 2025 Patagonia film documenting Bell’s search for the line and his journey through the Alaskan mountains. The 28-minute film follows the expedition into the remote terrain surrounding Haines and captures the combination of climbing, route-finding and extreme steep snowboarding required to complete the objective.

ENJOY!