The term "run and gun" as it relates to fishing has become somewhat of a cliché for any style of angling that has you running all over in search of a bite. But just because some people fish the run and gun that way doesn't mean they know what they are doing.

The run-and-gun approach is often considered an open-water-only tactic, but many ice-anglers use this technique to target active winter fish. Just like in the summertime, an effective run-and-gun attack needs to be carefully planned.

Bryan Sathre and guiding partner Brian Jones of First Choice Guide Service won the Ice Series event on Lake Winnibigoshish last year by using a modified ice-fishing run-and-gun approach for jumbo perch.

"What we did on Winnie is what we do on most bodies of water -- mark a few locations ahead of time, run out there and use our electronics to locate them, and then drop the line down to see what bites," Sathre said.

Anyone can look at a map, drill some holes, and then start fishing. However, the key is knowing where to go, what to look for while you are there and then what to use when you find the fish.

Moving around to different locations on a lake can be quite effective, but ice-fishing expert Terry Tuma cautioned anglers about moving just for the sake of moving.

"I think we sometimes move too much to catch fish, which creates more noise and wastes more time," Tuma said.

His advice is to be very strategic in that early phase of selecting the best places to fish.

"Even if you don't have a map or contact with a bait shop for the best locations when you get on a lake, you can usually read it pretty well and figure out where the fish should be holding," Tuma said. Points are great structures to locate, as are shorelines with steep inclines. "Usually when I go out, I'll take a look at the lake on the map, then I'll ask some questions at a bait shop or local anglers, then I do some scouting with my electronics to see where the fish are holding and at what depths."

The run-and-gun assault on the ice could mean you spend the entire day on one section of the lake, but you'll be fishing numerous locations within that section. Any given bay of a major body of water holds more panfish locations than you could effectively fish in a weekend. Add to that the fact that most panfish are in a constant state of movement both to elude predators and pursue their own food sources, and the run and gun can be done without crisscrossing the lake.

How many holes to drill is something that every run-and-gun angler seems to disagree on. Tuma said he'll sometimes drill only one hole on a spot if he is confident, while Sathre said the sky is the limit when it comes to drilling holes.