Smith Mountain Dock and Lodge consists of efficiency units and single-family homes set on the waterfront of Smith Mountain Lake. This facility has more than 100 slips for docking motorboats and sailboats up to 52 feet in length. An on-site grill serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. Guests can take out boats for swimming, sailing or boating, and fishing, and a general store on the premises sells live bait and fishing equipment. Guests can also hike, bike or camp at Smith Mountain Lake State Park, which lies across the lake and can be accessed by boat or car.
Guests looking for land-locked lodging can stay at the Hampton Inn in Gretna, a 20-minute drive east of Penhook. This hotel offers 81 business-class rooms, plus a conference center and business suite, fitness room, and complimentary breakfast. Guests can tour the nearby Tomahawk Mill Vineyard and Winery, a 19th-century estate converted into a vineyard that produces both red and white varietals. The vineyard offers tours and tastings events. Local dining options include a Dairy Queen and Subway for fast-food lovers, and Latrelle's restaurant, which serves up American cuisine.
A Holiday Inn Express sits 20 minutes west of Penhook in the town of Rocky Mount. This hotel offers single and double rooms and suites. Its amenities include a health and fitness center with an indoor pool and Jacuzzi. Local dining options include Wendy's, Sheetz and Applebee's. A five-minute drive to the local Wal-Mart will let you buy bait and camping, fishing or boating equipment. Rocky Mount boasts a number of attractions, including the more than 100-year-old courthouse, the history museum of the Franklin County Historical Society, and the Blue Ridge Dinner Theatre, which produces plays, musicals and evenings of bluegrass music.
Also in Rocky Mount is the 61-room Comfort Inn. Guests can lounge at the outdoor pool or dine at Ippy's, the inn's on-site restaurant. Some of the restaurants in downtown Rocky Mount include The Fisherman's Gallery, China City and the Red Clay Restaurant. All of these locations can be reached by car within five minutes. Rocky Mount hosts a daily, open-air farmer's market with stalls and shops selling fresh produce, meats and cheeses, along with arts and crafts. Adventurous travelers can rent paddle boats, kayaks or rowboats and head up the Appomattox River, which runs near Rocky Mount.
