They did not. They tried to conquer the land using their own strength and failed.

Source: Numbers 14:40-45

How did God lead the children of Israel during their wanderings?

God appeared to them by day as a pillar of cloud and by night as a pillar of fire.

Source: Exodus 13:21

Why did the nation of Israel have to wander in the wilderness in the first place?

The Israelites did not trust God and believed they could not conquer the land. God punished them by making them wander until all of that generation were dead.

Source: Numbers 14:1-24