OK guys, I need some help.

I have an 85 2.6 Gen I. I went to replace all of the cooling hoses, including all of the heater hoses. There's a metal pipe that runs from the back of the water pump, all the way down the side of the block, around the back of the block, and it has two nipples on it, halfway between the bellhousing and head. One nipple goes to the heater core, and the other goes to the intake manifold.
My problem is that this damn hose is so hard to get to, that I was barely able to get the old hoses and clamps off, much less get the new ones on. It seems that there's a bracket right next to the nipple that goes to the intake manifold. This is preventing me any clearance whatsoever to be able to squeeze even a thin clamp between the bracket and the hose, so I can properly position it, and tighten it.
It looks in my FSM like there's a bolt at that nipple, and one on the side of the block that attach the pipe to the block.
Is the best way to approach this to totally remove the pipe, attach the hoses to it, then reinstall the pipe? I;m not sure if I can even get to the bolts that attach the pipe to the block.

Thanks!