The lake can be very intimidating and I remember when I started fishing it for smallies I had all the same questions and concerns. Yes the rocks on the east and south side of the lake are great spots to find them. depth can very from day to day and from their seasonal patterns so there really isn't a target depth, some days in could be 4-6ft some days 20ft or somewhere in between. Some days it even changes throughout the day! with the wind deal, you should be able to find amazing smallie spots very close to public access. find a rock pile and fish it, if nothing move to the next, if you do get one figure out why you caught him, why was he there, what was he on, then go try to replicate it in other areas, any craw imitation works good, jerkbaits, dropshots, typical smallmouth baits.