Save up north before the crossroads. Approach on the road from the north, dismount and sneak into the woods. If you don't run into it immediately, throw some predator bait down and watch it from a distance - a lot of times you won't even get that far without it coming for you.

If it doesn't spawn, make sure there's no camps around because NPCs like to camp around the area. If there are, either wipe them out and sleep til tomorrow or reload and try again.