California man finishes nearly 3,000-mile walk across America after starting in Myrtle Beach

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) — A man who started his nearly 3,000-mile-long walk across America six months ago in Myrtle Beach recently completed it in California.

Ranger Kielak is the owner and a holistic success coach for his business, Within Range Coaching. He raised almost $10,000 for nonprofits across the country.

Kielak spent five years planning his walk across America. His goal was simple — raise money and highlight unique people along the way through social media.

But he said even when he made it to Pismo Beach, it wasn’t done until it was done.

“That was when I kind of just, like, blacked out, like, ‘oh my god, I finally did it,'” Kielak said. “Like, I am, you know, a five-second sprint away from being done.”

When News13 last spoke with Kielak six months ago, he was preparing to leave Myrtle Beach to start his nearly 3,000-mile-long venture.

“It was just like this immense amount of pride, excitement, like, I am doing something that I’ve been wanting to do for years,” he said. “It was just such a weird two or three or 20 emotions going on at the same time.”

It wasn’t always exciting, Kielak said, especially walking up and down rolling hills in South Carolina and his first 90-degree day in Oklahoma.

Kielak said through every city, there was always a concern in the back of his mind. But at the same time, he connected with so many people across the country, making the experience trump any of his worries.

“So is the issue, is the problem, the roadblock in my way important enough that I am willing to give up this accomplishment?” Kielak said.

Kielak said he did more than 30 podcast episodes, walked through 10 states, and, of course, accomplished the main goal — surviving. He said he completed his walk in just under six months.

He learned from it all and wants to continually build a life worth remembering.

“I would like to pass that on to others throughout, you know, my experience with the walk, the stories that I shared, that you can do the thing,” Kielak said. “That you have everything within you to do what you want to do.”

Kielak said he doesn’t plan on doing the walk again, but he encouraged others to take the leap. From here, he said he’s excited to build his coaching business and use what he learned from his walk to make an impact on others.

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Adrianna Lawrence is a multimedia journalist at News13. Adrianna is originally from Virginia Beach, Virginia, and joined the News13 team in June 2023 after graduating from Virginia Commonwealth University in May 2023. Keep up with Adrianna on Instagram, Facebook , and X, formerly Twitter . You can also read more of her work, here .

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