I find many times I get more of a view from across the river, where I hunt mule deer there are very high banks with lots of plateaus on the way up.
if you are on the same side you are hunting, you often do not see the animals until you move to the other side of the river!
My strategy here is to glass from the far side and move over and then hunt the animal from several hundred yards parallel to it.
Going straight up towards the critter rarely works in my experience.
Cat