How to get at cabin air intake (mouse nest)

I went to replace the cabin air filter in my car and realized that there's a huge mouse nest in the intake above the filter. I've tried pulling material down, but the space is so small it's hard to get it all out. My next step was to remove the wiper blades and plastic cowl to get at the intake, but that didn't get me as close to the intake as I was hoping.

Does anyone have some shred of advice here? I'm not against taking it to a mechanic and having them deal with it, but everyone near me is booking a month out and being able to defrost my windshield in the morning without blowing mouse poop on me would be nice.

Thanks!

PS, I'm sorry for the horrible title. I now realize how bad it is.

 

Okay, in the end I was able to get what I believe to be most of the junk out from the intake, just by reaching from the inside. Solves the immediate issue of the nest, but doesn't fix the ability of mice to get into the intake. Nor answers my question about how to access that vent.

All in all, I feel like this thread is no help to anyone! I tried to find a way to delete it, but wasn't able to.