hello: my name is ken and we have the same boat. the answer to your question is counterclockwise. last summer while on a trailer i removed the
winch,cable,sphere and clevis pin. i replaced everything, and this is easy to do and gives great piece of mind. when lowering i keep turning until i notice that the tension on the cable becomes slack letting me know that it is all the way down. then i turn it clockwise just enough to take out the slack and get the handle out of the way for going below purposes. please e-mail me anytime with your questions. be glad to assist. ken