So what do you do?

[Baldwin]

I've just recently discovered this site and it's great.  Can't stay away.  Anyway, I discovered turkey hunting late in life and I've become a full blown addict.  I've been a turkey hunter a number of years but still consider myself very much a novice.  My basic strategy is locate the bird still on the tree and set up as close as possible.  I run the one call I have confidence in (Woodhaven crystal) until I have his attention, then lay the call down and wait for him to come (hopefully).
I tend to use the call as little as possible.
On to my question:  Last weekend I had done what I described above and was at the point that I was set, the bird was on the ground and had answered my yelps, and I was confident he was on his way to me.  I was hunting unfamiliar territory and had set up in an area where I had little visibility. It was thick.  When the bird was very close he started drumming and I could tell he was strutting, but I could not see him.  I had my gun ready and was being as still as possible hoping I could spot him and get a shot.  The drumming/strutting went on forever (5 to 10 min.?) and then it got quiet.  After about 10 minutes, I did a little low yelping and he gobbled a couple of times, but he was no longer close and I could tell he was leaving.  What could I have done differently that would have provided me a shot (other than setting up in a more open area)?  During the time he was close and strutting, is there something I could have done to bring him closer?  If he had just moved a few feet, I feel that I could have seen him.  Oh, and even though it didn't work out the way I wanted, I had a blast!  Thanks in advance for any advice.

[TauntoHawk]

Scratch in the leaves mixed with some purr and clucks on a mouth call is the deal sealer

[Snoodsniper]

Sounds like you were in a tough spot. I probably would have done the same thing you did. Stay still and quiet. I was in a similar situation last year and got busted with a couple soft yelps on a mouth call and slight adjustment of my gun. I couldn't see the bird and he was way closer than I expected. Win some........ lose some.

[Dtrkyman]

In limited visibility spots I have been standing behind a large tree to give myself a much better view, it really works in steep terrain where gobblers always seem just over the rise.

It works fantastic, I killed 2 birds a couple years back from the same tree on seperate hunts, one was under 10 yards before I could even see him, killed him at 5 steps!  The other was 20-25 yards on the opposite side of the tree, both birds were close for several minutes without picking me out.

This is basically only going to work on a fairly vocal bird, because if he pops up on the side of the tree your standing on your likely busted.

Several years ago I had the same situation as you, had a bird drumming close for 10 minutes, I had a large oak 10 yards in front of me, so I crawled to it, stood up and peaked, to my amazement there he was spinning circles around a single hen, he was there so long he had a spot tore up in the leaves the size of a baby pool, killed him at 25ish yards! 

[jakesdad]

Scratch in the leaves mixed with some purr and clucks on a mouth call is the deal sealer

This^^^.

[zelmo1]

  Learn from this episode, what you did, didn't work. Set up in a different location so you can see better. The scratching is a good idea. With no decoy and being thick, that was it for him. No hen, no deal.

[Marc]

Did you have a decoy out?  If so, is it possible he put on a show for the decoy, and lost interest when she did not go to him?

I have had birds in shooting range, and never had the shot...  Very frustrating.  Generally such happens due to a poor choice of location, and I have frequently found that there was some small barrier (such as a dry creek bed or old fence line) that for whatever reason the bird did not want to cross...

If the bird is that close and losing interest, I will usually try calling (start with purrs and clucks and get more aggressive from there).

[Marc]

Scratch in the leaves with the rythym that turkeys scratch..

Great tactic...  The same book that I first read about this (the first year I turkey hunted), the author also mentioned when walking around in the woods, do so with the same cadence a turkey walks...  If you think you are near a bird, walk quickly with short steps...  I have bumped into a few birds doing this, and although tiring at times, it can work to your benefit to cut some distance on that tom without spooking him.

[GobbleNut]

Most of us that have hunted gobblers any length of time have had this happen to us,...and often on many occasions.  I agree with the "scratch in the leaves" strategy,....and the "call softly strategy",...and I have also tried the "get real aggressive strategy" on occasion.  The first two are generally always better than the third, but I have seen all of them work on occasion,....and I have also seen none of them work on occasion. 

If you make the right move, you feel like a turkey hunting hero,....and if you guess wrong, you feel like "el schmucko".  Regardless,...the next time around the results are likely to reverse themselves.   

[Bigspurs68]

There are a few things that you could have done IF you knew what was going to happen later. Of course, that's not possible. We've all been there. If you can hear him strutting close, I wouldn't think I'd have my hands on the ground scratching.
  If I get in the same situation, I usually go for broke. I call soft often enough to keep track of him and if he's in a place that will allow it, I'll get to my knees or stand for the shot. If I spook him, I'll go find another.
  When one is strutting close and I have no shot, I just tell myself that this is why I'm out there. I love that sound!

[wisconsinteacher]

I think I would have scratched the leaves and not called.  If he walks away, I would have repositioned on him and tried again.  A few years ago, I had 3 toms hang up on a fence line.  I let them walk away without spooking and make a semi-circle on them.  20 minutes later, I shot one of them.

[Bill Cooksey]

First thought would be to take a little more time to get in a better spot to set up. You usually have a lot more time than you think when that first gobble hits you. If I do get stuck in a spot with thick low cover, I stand to the turkey. You usually have better visibility from a standing position, and there's no rule (that I know of) that you have to be sitting down to shoot. A few seasons back, I killed all four of my Tennessee birds without sitting down.

[Dr Juice]

Scratch the leaves and do some soft purrs.

[jbrown]

We have all been there, learn from every hunt. Pick better set ups, scratchin leaves is deadly, let him walk off and reposition and call him back up.

[Spurs]

In limited visibility spots I have been standing behind a large tree to give myself a much better view, it really works in steep terrain where gobblers always seem just over the rise.

It works fantastic, I killed 2 birds a couple years back from the same tree on seperate hunts, one was under 10 yards before I could even see him, killed him at 5 steps!  The other was 20-25 yards on the opposite side of the tree, both birds were close for several minutes without picking me out.

This is basically only going to work on a fairly vocal bird, because if he pops up on the side of the tree your standing on your likely busted.

Several years ago I had the same situation as you, had a bird drumming close for 10 minutes, I had a large oak 10 yards in front of me, so I crawled to it, stood up and peaked, to my amazement there he was spinning circles around a single hen, he was there so long he had a spot tore up in the leaves the size of a baby pool, killed him at 25ish yards! 

I have a tendency to stand more than I sit now because of this.  It is easier to see/call/readjust/hide behind a tree than sitting.  Just make sure that the tree is big enough to conceal your entire body, unless you can see a long ways (60+ yards).  I hunt a bunch of thick stuff and it works wonders.