This is NOT a nautical term. It's a reference to a log cabin, not a ship's cabin. It's the restlessness caused by long terms of confinement in a cabin that's snowed in for the winter.

Cabin Fever (2003) is an American horror film written and directed by Eli Roth. It is a 1970s genre throwback, and pays homage to some of the most popular horror films, such as The Evil Dead by Sam Raimi, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre original by Tobe Hooper and The Last House on the Left by horror master Wes Craven.

Cabin fever is a condition that produces restlessness and irritability caused from being in a confined space.