[quentusrex]

As a diver in Seattle, this is the real reason. Cove 2 is where many new divers are taken for their initial certifications. That particular octopus has been a local diving attraction for a while, and was used by many groups to teach new divers how to observe underwater creatures without interfering with their habitat.

If you do a search for Alki GPO, from before the harvest, you can find that there were many divers who were able to get their underwater photography hobbies started with a picture of that GPO. This particular GPO was about as tame as any GPO that I've personally seen in the Puget Sound. This gave new divers a chance to take their time trying to get their cameras setup, as well as getting multiple pictures.