I know all about it
Had to use my spare last week and it took me 45 minutes to get the damn thing down to even mount it. What worked for me was yanking out the plastic tube assembly that runs from the bumper to the winch crank. Mine did the exact same thing as yours. It cranked down an inch or so and then made that clicking sound like it was stripped out. When I removed the tube, I had a clear sightline and was able to access the crank a more easily. Just my but you may have a different problem.