Well-known man Chris Kiriona, regularly seen walking along Te Ngae Rd, has died

Chris Kiriona was often seen walking along Te Ngae Rd. Photo / Supplied

A Rotorua man who was seen by many but known by few has died.

Chris Kiriona, who walked from the Whakatāne turnoff, along Te Ngae Rd and into town every day, died on Sunday from a heart attack.

The 65-year-old lived with his aunty, Blanche Kiriona, on and off for seven years.

Kiriona remembers her nephew as a "gorgeous and gentle person" who loved his routine.

She said he had a quiet character, was pleasant and always smiled.

"He was the man who routinely walked to town. If you saw him walking past the airport that meant he'd missed the bus and he wasn't waiting for the next one."

Chris would spend his time in town window shopping, have a rest and then walk the 13km back home.

Kiriona believed that Chris' total mileage going from his house into town and back would have equated to "zig-zagging down the width and breadth of New Zealand".

She said she would offer to take Chris into town but he liked to go early which was why many people saw him walking at 7am.

And the weather wouldn't faze him. He walked in rain, hail or snow, Kiriona said.

He was also well known for his dress sense, often seen in a leather jacket, a black trenchcoat and an umbrella to support a back injury sustained in 1986.

"People would remember his green shoes. We actually buried them with him."

Chris, who grew up in the Ngāti Raukawa area, had a hard life spent fending for himself, Kiriona said.

She said from a child until he came to live with her, Chris spent time in prison for petty theft, stealing to ensure he and his siblings survived.

"The sad thing is once they grew up and made their own lives they didn't connect as a family after that."

Chris is buried in the whānau urupa, near where he lived, which overlooks the traffic on a road that he knew so well.