East coast road trip need tips

Can't say for sure about the McCandless museum. Not been there myself.
But depending on time day you would be traveling through Raleigh, Durham, and Burlington, traffic is BAD.

Going down the Outer Banks on NC12 is nice. Cape Hatteras lighthouse a must see. Last I heard they do allow people to climb the stairs to the top. Plan on extra time. NC12 is two lanes and beach traffic can be slow plus you will have to wait for and ride 2 ferries. Ocracoke is still fairly nice. Not too built up. If you have the time, rent bicycles and tour the island. It's flat and is an easy pedal. Also, a lighthouse at Ocracoke but, is not open to the public.

Some nice places to eat at Morehead City and Atlantic Beach (coworker goes there fairly often, I'll ask him about dance/intertainment venues).
Mixed reviews recently on Sanitary Market.

Don't know what y'all's interest are. I assume you'll be taking a lady friend so, I'll try to think of various interests.

Get used to "y'all", you're in the South.

Fish Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores.
NC17 usually rolls pretty good. Avoid it Friday or Sunday evenings. Crowds going to or from the beach.

Battleship NC at Wilmington. Unless, you're really into investigating old ships, you could just admire it from the parking lot and drive on.
Waterfront district in Wilmington has some shopping (esoteric stuff, local handmade crafts, etc. ) and restaurants and bars. Can't think of anything specific. Nice old town dating back to the 1800's or earlier.

If you stay on 17 it'll take you down to Myrtle Beach with a fairly easy drive.
Or continuing down the coast road, Wrightsville Beach is the happening place with bars and restaurants but is expensive. Just parking the car $$.
Carolina Beach has many, many restaurants.
Fort Fisher is a Civil War fort. Not much to see. A public beach access with bath house just a little further down the road. Very nice.
Another ferry will take you to Southport. An old port town. Has a historic district with old homes.


I"ll try to think of car related stuff. Got to go for now.