Hi Richard, We live on Smith Lake on the Walker county side.For a place to stay with your boat try
www.smithlakevacationrentals.com or
www.vrbo.com. The hotels in Jasper are the Jameson Inn,Holiday Inn Express,Days Inn,Hampton Inn.Duncan Bridge has a small restaurant and a nice launch.The Lewis Smith Dam has a nice launch that is free.I'm not sure if the Lakeshore Inn is open, it was for sale.As far as riding during the week there is no one out on the water since school has started back, during the weekend it is not bad either.You can probably get a map of the lake at any of the marinas.The three counties are dry, just the city of Jasper serves alcohol or has any nightlife(if that is what you are looking for)Have Fun!