Travel Picks: Top 10 quirky New Year's Eve drops

NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) - Find watching the ball dropping in Times Square a bit dull? Then try taking part in some of the other drops going on around the United States on New Year's Eve with crabs, pirates and cheeses all set to fall.

Website TripAdvisor (www.tripadvisor.com) has come up with a list of America's top 10 quirkiest New Year's Eve drops on advice of its editors and travelers. This list is not endorsed by Reuters.

"While New York City's famous ball drop in Times Square is a spectacular sight, there are other uniquely wonderful ways Americans can ring in the New Year," said TripAdvisor spokeswoman Michele Perry. "While they range from clever to wacky, it's clear that New Year's Eve is about celebrating traditions and enjoying the company of a crowd."

1. Key West, Florida - Conch, drag queen and pirate

Choose to watch a conch, drag queen, or pirate wench descend at midnight. Duval Street hosts two celebrations, including the 16th annual conch shell drop from the roof of Sloppy Joe's Bar and the lowering of local legend Drag Queen Sushi in her glittering six-foot tall, red, high-heeled shoe. Along the harbor, the Schooner Wharf Bar lowers a costumed "pirate wench."

2. Bethlehem, Pennsylvania - marshmallow "peep"

Although Bethlehem, Pennsylvania is widely recognized for its Christmas attractions, its New Year's Eve Peep drop has been a sweet tradition for three years running. A 25-pound fiberglass illuminated Peep, an animal shaped marshmallow, is dropped from a crane at midnight with entertainment.

3. Port Clinton, Ohio- fish

Now in its 14th year, the self-proclaimed "Walleye Capital of the World" drops a 20-foot, 600-pound fiberglass walleye fish named Wylie from the sky at midnight.

4. Mount Olive, North Carolina- pickles

This year marks the 10th anniversary of Mount Olive's pickle drop, where a three-foot tall, glowing pickle makes a 45-foot plunge down the Mount Olive Pickle Company's flagpole into a redwood pickle tank.

5. Elmore, Ohio - sausages

Inspired by the town's longest running business, Tank's Meats, Elmore's locals drop a brilliantly lit, 18-foot sausage from the sky to welcome in the New Year. The celebration also includes zany events like a raw sausage toss, the sausage eating contest and a "dress your dog" contest for children.

6. Lebanon, Pennsylvania- bologna

Weighing in at 120 pounds, Lebanon's seven-and-a-half-foot edible bologna has been the star of this town's New Year's Eve celebration for more than seven years. This free annual celebration lists the help of a city fire department ladder truck to lower the super-sized bologna at midnight.

7. New Orleans, Louisiana - gumbo pot