Help 99 Yachtwin foot removal

"I have an 87 model E10SELCUE,

"I have an 87 model E10SELCUE, yachtwin 9.9 evinrude motor. I have a manual that shows to remove the foot,(I need to install a new water pump kit), remove the bolts holding the foot in place, shift the drive into forward, and remove the bottom bolt on the shifter rod. It appears the bolt is between the foot and the extension housing. NO BOLT, just shifter rod. I removed the bolts from between the extension housing and the exhaust/motor body, I can get an 1/4 gap between the two and can see a bolt on the shifter rod, but am unable to get enough room to remove the bolt. HOw do I remove the extension to get at the bolt, and am I on the right track??? Thanks for any advice.........Buck"

"Try moving the shift lever in

"Try moving the shift lever into reverse--
this may allow you to move the lower unit down just enough to get at the bolt--
I dont think that you can remove the extension until you seperate the shift lever--
after years of use it can take a lot of tugging to get those pieces seperated--there is an exploded view of that motor on evinrude's website at www.evinrude.com"

"The trouble is, the bolt is b

"The trouble is, the bolt is between the extension and the upper housing, moving the shifter into reverse moves the bolt, but there is not enough room to get a screwdriver in. The bolt can only be removed after the extension is moved........The exploded view shows the bolt at the bottom, but it is at the top.........I went to a mechanic today, they were in a school, try again tomorrow, thanks.........."