On the "Escape from NYC" choice, it depends on how much you like hills. If you're okay with them, just head west into PA. Alternatively, taking the ferry to Sandy Hook gives you a couple of options. You can head west from there and connect with the canal towpath out of Edison/New Brunswick. That's 60 or so miles of car free travel into Trenton, then cut across to York, PA where you can connect with the North Central rail trail that will take you to just north of Baltimore. The second option is to head south and take the Cape May-Lewes ferry. From there you can either head west to the Bay Bridge into Annapolis or go south all the way to Norfolk. The negative of going all the way to Norfolk is it's not as direct for the ride to Durham if you absolutely need to go there.